The humble voices found their collective strength

Malaysia Fear-no-more (part I)

2011-07-12T01:07:00.002+08:00

I was there at the Bersih 2.0 rally. I was attacked by tear gas, sprayed with water cannon, chased by FRU personnel. But alas I am fear-no-more.

In hindsight, I can see very clearly how pervasive and all-encompassing the propaganda of fear has been against the Bersih rally. The constant arrests of activists relating to Bersih, army rehearsal with banners saying “Disperse, or else we will shot”, the “third line of defense” declaration, weapon cache “discovered” by the police, and all sorts of thinly veiled threats from the government and pro- government right wing groups.

The all out intimidation and psychological warfare unleashed by the government was sickening and nauseating to the utmost degree. I was so turned off that I did not hesitate for a single moment when I was invited to join a small group of friends to participate in the Bersih rally. Despite all the fear drilled into my consciousness I knew that I had to do something. I knew that Malaysia is in real danger of descending into a police state if the people do not put a stop to it.

We anticipated that KL will be completely barricaded, so we book some hotel rooms in KL for Friday night to make sure that we won’t get locked out of the action. But our little group got more and more un-nerved as the day approaches. We took all sorts of extreme precautions – including purchasing new handphones, new prepaid SIM cards, and we would not exchange our new phone numbers with each other over the phone. Yes – we were paranoiac. The fact that we have some recognizable faces associated with a NGO weighted heavily on the group.

Our horror story begun to intensify tremendously soon after we checked into the hotel on Friday evening. Our group leader received a very strange phone call after we can back from dinner.

“Is Mei there?” a voice asked.

“No”.

“Your friend Mei from Singapore is in trouble. Can you come down?” the voice said.

“I do not know of such person.” Somehow somebody thought that one of us was from Singapore. Of course our leader was not so naive.

The phone call got everybody very uneasy. Then around mid-night we got winds that the police have started raiding hotels. Now everybody is getting really nervous. We were told not to put the “Don’t disturb” sign on our doors – and we should never answer the door.

The next morning proved to be even more unnerving. One of our group member pointed out that seated next to our breakfast table was two personnel from the Special Branch. It was obvious from the type of boot they wore and their crew cut hair, she said. Everybody was a nervous wreck by then. We decided to erase any trace of evidence that can link us to the Bersih rally. No salt, not even face towels, and we made up stories why we were in the same hotel together. Our leader even told us that if decided to pull out, we should not feel that we have failed.

I am telling you all these so that you can get a sense of the type of pressures that one has to endure in being associated with anything that is perceived as being remotely anti-government. It takes a lot of courage to be in the forefront of change. Amiga, and indeed the whole Bersih committee, deserve every bit of recognition for their courage.

I was quite nonchalant about all these intimations nevertheless, much to the annoyance of my wife. I had my reasoning and perception of the situation. My reasoning was that firstly we have not committed any crime. If we were to be harassed by the police, I do not even feel that there is any need for us to explain ourselves. Doesn’t the constitution guarantee our freedom of movements?

What annoyed my wife most was that I could not care less to lower my voice. I continue to blare with my booming voice. I discussed passionately and openly with our group members about the crisis the world is facing and the future of Malaysia. I had no concern that whatever I said could be misconstrued as being seditious (whatever it means). I have deep faith that true sincerity, with no hatred and no negativity, has the power to touch another heart. So what if the Special Branch personnel are spying on us? I wouldn’t mind at all - if that is way for our plights to get across to the government.

But fundamentally I don’t think the police can do anything to us. There is no ground for the police to harass us is one thing. More importantly there is little value for them to harass us, and I don’t think they have the man power anyway. We as individuals are simply too small and too insignificant to have an impact on the rally.

The total deployment of the police force, together with the plain cloth police and Special Branch personnel that do not care to cover themselves are totally irrational. The massive display of force can make it inconvenient for people to get into KL, but there is no way for the police to prevent an individual from entering and remaining in KL, apart from a court order. The government did manage to obtain the court order to restrain 91 people from entering KL, but that is already making the government a laughing stock in the eyes of the people and the international community.

It is all about intimidation. That’s the only logical conclusion I can reach. But logical reasoning is one thing. It took a lot more to alleviate the fear drilled into our emotional brain through decades of propaganda. It wasn’t until the rally begun with explosive suddenness that my fear was shattered with with the suddenness of being woken up from a bad dream.

Middle East Fever Hits America!

2011-03-14T02:04:00.000+08:00

85,000 - 100,000 people marched to the street in Madison, and students are walking out in many parts of the country. You don't get to see news like that in CNN. The mainstream media in US are sanctioned. News in US are not free, it is not any better than Malaysia.

What is it about?

Michael Moore in Madison, Wisconsin on March 5, 2011:

"America is not broke. Not by a long shot. The country is awash in wealth and cash. It's just that it’s not in your hands. It has been transferred, in the greatest heist in history, from the workers and consumers to the banks and the portfolios of the uber-rich ... The only thing that's broke is the moral compass of the rulers. And we aim to fix that compass and steer the ship ourselves from now on." –

Contrary to what those in power would like you to believe so that you'll give up your pension, cut your wages, and settle for the life your great-grandparents had, America is not broke. Not by a long shot. The country is awash in wealth and cash. It's just that it's not in your hands. It has been transferred, in the greatest heist in history, from the workers and consumers to the banks and the portfolios of the uber-rich.

Today just 400 Americans have the same wealth as half of all Americans combined (note: it is more like 60% in reality).

Let me say that again. 400 obscenely rich people, most of whom benefited in some way from the multi-trillion dollar taxpayer "bailout" of 2008, now have as much loot, stock and property as the assets of 155 million Americans combined. If you can't bring yourself to call that a financial coup d'état, then you are simply not being honest about what you know in your heart to be true.

And I can see why. For us to admit that we have let a small group of men abscond with and hoard the bulk of the wealth that runs our economy, would mean that we'd have to accept the humiliating acknowledgment that we have indeed surrendered our precious Democracy to the moneyed elite. Wall Street, the banks and the Fortune 500 now run this Republic -- and, until this past month, the rest of us have felt completely helpless, unable to find a way to do anything about it.

I have nothing more than a high school degree. But back when I was in school, every student had to take one semester of economics in order to graduate. And here's what I learned: Money doesn't grow on trees. It grows when we make things. It grows when we have good jobs with good wages that we use to buy the things we need and thus create more jobs. It grows when we provide an outstanding educational system that then grows a new generation of inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, scientists and thinkers who come up with the next great idea for the planet. And that new idea creates new jobs and that creates revenue for the state. But if those who have the most money don't pay their fair share of taxes, the state can't function. The schools can't produce the best and the brightest who will go on to create those jobs. If the wealthy get to keep most of their money, we have seen what they will do with it: recklessly gamble it on crazy Wall Street schemes and crash our economy. The crash they created cost us millions of jobs. That too caused a reduction in tax revenue. Everyone ended up suffering because of what the rich did.

The nation is not broke, my friends. Wisconsin is not broke. Saying that the country is broke is repeating a Big Lie. It's one of the three biggest lies of the decade: 1) America is broke, 2) Iraq has WMD, and 3) The Packers can't win the Super Bowl without Brett Favre....

So how do we make this happen? Well, we do it with a little bit of Egypt here, a little bit of Madison there. And let us pause for a moment and remember that it was a poor man with a fruit stand in Tunisia who gave his life so that the world might focus its attention on how a government run by billionaires for billionaires is an affront to freedom and morality and humanity....

More here:
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/america-is-not-broke

Make sure you watch Michael Moore speech. The youtube clip was viewed 500,000 times. It was simply WOW. Anwar Ibrahim would never be able to deliver a speech like that. Anwar is the lesser evil compared to BN - but he is very much a player within the system of power and greed. The current political/economic system simply needs a complete overhaul. Period.

A different type of leadership has to emerge for humanity to have a tomorrow. It will emerge. The signs are all over the wall. The question whether we will wisen up and assume the necessary discipline to make the inevitable transformation as painless as possible.

" Only everybody-all-at-once can change the current chaos." - Adi Da

Are we in for another May 13?

2010-01-09T03:22:00.002+08:00

I was furious and alarmed by the news that 3 churches were being fire-bombed over the Allah issue. I was not angry at the Muslims. No – I don’t believe that Muslims are behind the bombing.

There were a lot of hot air, a lot of rousing speeches surrounding the Allah banning issue – as if the whole Muslim world were mightily offended and up in arms against the recent court ruling that non-Muslim can use the word Allah. There were even threats of a massive demonstration, which the Prime Minister and the Home Minister deemed justifiable (see Malaysiakini).

But whatever happened to the demonstration? As reported in Malaysiakini - only a few dozen here and there participated in the demonstration. It was really pitifully small compared to a ceramah by Dato Sri Anwar Ibrahim. So where were the angry Muslims?

From the onset – the Allah issue was artificially drummed up. The Christian Church had used Allah for over 50 years in Malaysia. Has anybody heard of a single incident of a Muslim gotten confused, doped, cheated, confounded, mislead over its use? Were there any cases of police reports regarding this BEFORE the Home Ministry brought up the issue?

Apart from a handful of UMNO politicians and pro-Barisan Nasional NGO’s blowing a lot of hot air, PAS president Nik Aziz as well as many learned and revered Muslim authorities have already expressed their views that Allah should not be ban for non-Muslims.

It was completely obvious to me that right from the beginning there was never a religious or racial issue. I had thought that with PAS and Pakatan Rakyat standing firm on the side of reason nothing much would come of it.

The arson attacks on 3 Churches came as a complete surprise to me. I was terribly angry – not with the Muslims. I never believe that religious motives were behind this whole saga. My anger was towards Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the many politicians from Barisan Nasional for irresponsibly stirring up racial sentiments out of a non-issue.

The arson attacks are so out of proportion that one could not help but suspect some sinister agendas behind the scene. I don’t want to make any conjecture least I got hauled up with sedation charges. Is this going to lead to another May 13 or land Malaysia into military rule? I don’t’ believe so, although I don’t rule out that some really sick and really powerful people may be plotting something of such nature.

Put it this way. Malaysia is in deep problem right now. Our social, political, economic and judiciary systems have been in rapid decline. We simply could not afford a major disruption of such nature. I believe that the Christians and other non-Muslims have enough good sense that they will not react with violence. I believe that the Pakatan Rakyat state government and many good people in the police force are doing what they can to maintain peace. I believe there are enough good people with good judgments working hard to prevent more violence from happening.

This is a shameful day for Malaysia indeed. This incident is going to put Malaysia in the spotlight of the world media for the wrong reason. It makes a complete mockery of Najib’s 1Malaysia initiatives. It deals another blow to Najib, who is already suffering from major credibility problems.

Every cloud has a silver lining. Despite the constant drumming of politically motivate racial rhetoric; we have seen many voices of moderation at work as well. One lesson we can learn from this saga is that we don’t have racial problems as such. All racial tensions are stirred up intentionally to serve the interest of a few people in power.

This is a time of reflection and reconciliation. It is touching to see PAS and a few Muslim groups kick into action right away to raise fund to rebuild the churches that suffered damage from the attack. This is the most significant inter-faith cooperation that I witnessed in Malaysia. This is the type of spirit that we need to rebuild our beloved country from the ashes.

A Million Dollar Question Regarding the Allah Saga

2010-01-07T02:08:00.000+08:00

I have been keenly watching the unfolding saga regarding the Home Ministry of Malaysia banning the Christian for using the word Allah to refer to God in its publications in the Malay language. I believe that many Malaysian are stirred up one way or another by this saga. But my interest is more on the sheer amount irrationality and idiocy displayed by the many parties directly or indirectly involved in this issue. Please, before you curse me to hell, allow me to qualify what I mean by this statement.

Firstly, I don’t intend to start a theological debate. I am simply not qualified for it, and furthermore many highly qualified people have already expressed their highly informative views.

Now let's begin from the very beginning. Why did the Home Ministry raised this issue in the first place? Culturally and historically Allah has been used by Christian in Malaysia as the Malay translation for God for decades. It is also the case in Indonesia, the country with the highest Muslim population.

The Home Ministry’s reason for doing so was that the use of Allah by the Christians would ‘confuse’ the Muslim. But was there any actual complains, any police report, that anybody actually got confused, mislead, tricked, duped or deceived by this particular translation of God? Was there any evidence of Muslim got converted to Christian because of it?

Should we investigate the validity of the claims by the Home Ministry before we start throwing daggers and shooting machine guns at each other? I have been patiently monitoring the development of this saga, and as far as I can tell, there is no evidence whatsoever of this claim. Despite the highly emotional and explosive rhetoric by various ‘authorities’, I have not seen anybody producing a single piece of evidence to substantiate this particular claim by the Home Ministry.

Of course now that I have raised the question, the 'authorities' can always fabricate all sorts of 'evidences' to substantiate this particular claim by the Home Ministry.

In other words, this is a completely non-issue. But yet certain parties are already threatening to detonate nuclear bombs on each other. Do you see how absurd this situation is? I have patiently waited until the point of views of the various parties has more or less completely surfaced before writing this article, so that the reader can see how ridiculous this whole saga is.

Ok, the nuclear bomb is only a figure a speech. We are not really about to spill blood over this non-issue. I don’t think Malaysians are so crazy yet. But look at how the politicians, almost exclusively from Barisan Nasional, and state owned media is playing up the public emotion over this.

What is the true motive of the Barisan Nasional government in stirring up public emotions over a non-issue? This is the million dollar question.

Now I got your attention. Don’t you feel ridiculous that Malaysian are spending so much time and energy over a non-issue while the whole country is plaque with political/economic instabilities and engulfed in scandals of epic proportions?

Do I need to remind you the twelve billion ringgit PKFZ fiasco, the missing Jet Engines and whatnots from Royal Air Force of Malaysia, the special task force and body guard of the (then) Defense Minister implicated in murder with military C4 explosives, Sodomy II, constitution crisis in Perak,…

How about the GST, the declining economy, declining competitiveness, depleting oil reserve, depleting natural resources, raising prices of sugar, flour, petrol, …
Have you wondered how we are going to pull through all these? Have you wondered whether the Barisan Nasional government is able to lead us out of this quicksand? Why did the Home Ministry stirred up such explosive racial tensions over a non-issue while ignoring the real issues under its jurisdiction like police corruption, police brutality and sky rocketed crime rate?

You see, if you ask the right question the answer stares right at you face. I don’t want to elaborate further here least I got haul up with sedation charges. But I trust that you know what I mean.

Cool it, my Muslim and Christian brothers and sisters. Please ignore the unscrupulous bigots and politicians and recognize that this is a non-issue. Malaysia is in real crisis. Let's not fool ourselves. Our quality of life has degraded tremendously over the recent years. We will continue in this free fall unless we learn to cooperate and work together regardless of race and religion.

The Imam and the Pastor

2010-01-01T13:11:00.004+08:00

From vengeance and killing to healing and forgiveness…
a moving story of grass-roots peace building that gives hope to humanity

This 39-minute documentary film brings to life the astonishing reconciliation between Imam Muhammad Ashafa and Pastor James Wuye, and their peace-making initiatives which have ensued. They were leaders of militant groups involved in conflict between Muslims and Christians in Kaduna, northern Nigeria. Pastor Wuye lost a hand while Imam Ashafa's mentor and two close relatives were killed in the fighting. Now they are taking bold initiatives to promote co-operation and resolve conflicts. The film, narrated by Rageh Omaar, shows that it is possible for the perpetrators of inter-religious violence to become instigators of peace. It is a story of forgiveness and a case study of grass-roots initiatives to rebuild communities torn apart by conflict. Imam Ashafa and Pastor Wuye are the joint founders and directors of the Inter-Faith Mediation Centre in Kaduna.

This is one of the most touching documentaries that I have watched in recent years. I am grateful to Nur Damai efforts for presenting this film at the forum organized by SABM.

Many of you may not have heard of SABM (Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia), and most of you would definitely have not heard of Nur Damai. You may ask - what is the relevance of two almost unheard of organization in the current world situation?

Lets not fool ourselves. The current world situation is in chaos and rapid decline. Many people are moved to do unexpected and unusual things. Two years ago I would not have guessed that I would one day be involved in political rallies and candle light vigils, not to mention blogging.

The effort of an individual person - or any isolated group of persons will not be able to achieve much. But recently there have been an explosive growth in civil consciousness, fueled by the explosive growth of the Internet. Millions of civil societies sprung into existence all over the world in recent years; and they represents the voices of the common people yearning for a change in the current corrupted and corrupting mode of existence.

This is the People Power movement at the global scale. What is required now is for a core group morally enlightened and fearless leaders to step forward to take charge and lead the change. It will happen as a matter of necessity for our collective existence.

Reconciliation and cooperation, as exemplified by this touching documentary, is my new year wish for the coming decade.

Nur Damai means Light of Peace. It is about Multifaith Peacebuilding - the essence of which is inter-communal reconciliation and healing of memory among Malaysians.

Next Showing of the "Imam and the Pastor"

SABM has graceful agreed to host another showing of The Imam and the Pastor on Saturday, 9th January 2010 at 7.30 pm at Rumah Anak Bangsa Malaysia.

Please contact faridajivamala at gmail.com for more information.

The Last Emperor of MIC

2009-09-13T01:19:00.006+08:00

The result of Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) election did not take me by surprise. I had thought that if MIC delegates have any sense at all, they would at least get Subramaniam elected as the deputy president. But frankly I couldn’t care less what happens with MIC. If Subramaniam is worthy of being elected at all then there is no sense for him to stay with MIC. What can one person do when practically the whole party machinery is being controlled by Samy Vellu?

Today’s MIC election result is only another indication confirming the irrelevance of MIC. Yes, Samy Vellu reigns supreme again - but to what? Isn’t the past 8 by-elections, where over 85% of Indian voted for the opposition party - Pakatan Rakyat, a good enough indications that MIC should just be dissolved?

The fate of MIC can be compared to the late Ching Dynasty of China. During the last days of Ching Dynasty the child emperor Pu Yi was confined to the Forbidden City while the whole country descended in utter chaos. His emperorship was maintained by the warlords for political and diplomatic manipulations.

Pu Yi was confined in an imaginary world, left behind time and out of touch with reality. He was surrounded by an entourage of concubines and eunuchs who have no where else to go. Many stayed behind to plunder whatever left of the imperial treasures amassed through centuries of exploitations.

Such is the fate of MIC now. Tell me that Samy’s candidate lineup is not a bunch of eunuchs and concubines. Tell me that the delegates who voted for Samy’s lineup are not a bunch of eunuchs and concubines. Tell me that this bunch of eunuchs and concubines are not there to share Samy’s 32 years of loot. Tell me that these bunch of eunuchs and concubines are there to serve the Indians.

The sorry state of MIC could also be said of the rest of Barisan Nasional component parties. The whole Barisan Nasional government has gotten so stinking rotten that one just wants to flush it down the toilet and forgets about it like a bad dream.

I don’t want Pakatan Rakyat to feel congratulated by what I wrote. I can very honestly say that I don’t think Pakatan Rakyat is worthy of being a political party. I don't think it is able to form a shadow cabinet without causing major split in the party. I don't think it has done a great job in governing the states under its control as well. I would be very reluctant to give Pakatan Rakyat a 50% passing mark.

But at least Pakatan Rakyat is not a pile of complete bullshit. If the recent Japan election were to serve as an indicator – Pakatan Rakyat may just well win the next general election, and I think more likely than not that it will.

I don’t believe that the answer to the profound ills that humanity is suffering now lies in the political arena. Humanity needs a new beginning. The current chaos is but a time of awakening. A new type of leadership needs to arise. It will happen as a matter of necessity for humanity continued survival.

"Only everybody-all-at-once can change the current chaos."
Adi Da
Not-Two Is Peace

Not-Two Is Peace – A Definitive Guide to People Power

2009-08-09T11:10:00.003+08:00

I had wanted to introduce this remarkable book, “Not-Two Is Peace” by Adi Da to the Malaysian readers, but felt daunted and inadequate. Truly there is nothing I can write that will do justice to the profundity of this book – except to bring up a few salient points.

This book is about establishing world peace and cooperation; however the wisdom is applicable in the local context as much as in the global context. One important point I like to highlight is that People Power is not about everybody having a lot to say about everything. Rather the key is an initial council of morally enlightened lenders, who has the capacity to make connection to the people and establishes a right representation of the whole population.

Below are some excepts for Not-Two Is Peace. The book is published on-line HERE.

Part I
On the dangers of the old tribalisms, and the necessity for a Global Cooperative Forum based on the Prior Unity of humankind

1.1. The old moral, social, and political order of humankind is now dead.
1.2. This is the moment when it will be decided what the future is going to be…

1.28. At present, a culture of total war, a culture of death, is ruling, while the people are engrossed in consumerism.
1.29. The only power on earth that can stop the trend toward total war is the power of the human population declaring it will not cooperate with this nihilistic culture of total war and the ideologies of total dominance.
1.30. In the present day, declarations of independent states based on ethnic and religious traditions are creating huge problems. Previous larger confederacies are breaking down.
1.31. This trend is all about tribalization, setting up absolute pockets of power—based on the mythologies of the past, the traditions of the past, the separateness of geographical zones, the separateness of particular classes or races of people.
1.32. This disastrous fragmentation of humanity has to stop. What is needed is exactly the opposite of that.
1.33. The absolutization of tribal minds is the happening of the human race in this moment, and this is exactly what must be transcended. That requires a new kind of political orientation…

1.45. Presently, the powers of the separate state are being used to control populations all over the world.
1.46. The power of industry and money is actually senior to governments, and is now controlling the entire world.
1.47. The only power that can deal with these powers that are on the verge of destroying the world is everybody-all-at-once—meaning not merely mob power, but a new cooperative system for dealing with issues.
1.48. The efforts of separate states and vested interests to control the people are not going to work forever. Sooner or later, the global population is going to demand a cooperative, benign situation.
1.49. That is why there needs to be a Global Cooperative Forum, in which all of humankind participates through right representation.
1.50. Such a Global Cooperative Forum would not be subordinate to a tribalization program imposed by nation-states, but would inform all of the existing political entities benignly and cooperatively.
1.51. Humankind has got to get down to its own business and choose itself, and the Global Cooperative Forum is the means to do that…
1.55. In the "room" of humankind as a whole, the "room" of everybody-all-at-once, there is no "two"--there are no flags, there are no religions, and there is no "self"-imagery that may be exclusively asserted. Rather, humankind must simply represent itself, and get together to create a new global domain for human existence. This is the great project.

Part II
On the Necessity to Give Institutional Form
To the Principle of Prior Unity

2.18. The means to bring about the Global Cooperative Forum is not some council of highly-placed morally-enlightened individuals merely making a proposition to everybody that this is necessary.
2.19. The role of the initial council must be to accomplish the connecting with the human totality.
2.20. Without that participation of the world population, the Global Cooperative Forum would be just another group of highly-placed people communicating high-minded notions and struggling to achieve them. It would be back to the same old process.
2.21. The initial leadership of the Global Cooperative Forum will come from individuals who are disillusioned with power, and who see that the current efforts to improve the situation of humanity are not sufficient to transform the whole.
2.22. If the initial council knows how to make the connections, and does so, and establishes right representation for the global population, then the Global Cooperative Forum will emerge virtually out of the woodwork.
2.23. It is essential to fully connect the six and a half billion people to a process. That means that the total human collective, or everybody-all-at-once, must become conscious of itself.
2.24. Everybody-all-at-once must be communicated with by the initial council, and enabled to make itself known.
2.25. Everybody-all-at-once must be able to require that it be heard and that its requirements be acted upon in every positive sense.
2.26. This is the happening that is not in the works. Making the connection to the six and a half billion people has never been done.
2.27. The Global Cooperative Forum is the institutionalized face for the six and half billion to manage itself.
2.28. The initial council is needed first. That council defines the issues and also organizes all the means of connectedness to the human totality. Then an effective, participatory process of global dialogue can begin.
2.29. The internet would be the necessary means of this connectedness.

Part V
On Non-Cooperation with What is Wrong
and On Mobilizing the Human Totality
Based on the Self-Evident Truth of Prior Unity

5.18. In fact, the Global Cooperative Forum begins in the instant of its being communicated to the human population. Everybody-all-at-once has the immediate ability to implement it, by virtue of everyone hearing the message and seeing the tacit obviousness of it.
5.19. The happening of truth is not through the mind--it is at the heart. Truth is not a proposition argued over against other propositions. Truth is self-evident, because the heart authenticates it in the moment of reception.
5.20. Truth is an embrace, just as love is. You do not get argued into love. It is self-evidently right.
5.21. One responds to truth as one does to love, simply through recognizing it. It is not about argument, not about the domain of mind, or of opposites.
5.22. That is how the Global Cooperative Forum will come about. It will happen with everybody-all-at-once, because it is right. It is true, it is so. There is no argument either for or against it. It is simply self-evidently true—immediately, on the moment of its presentation.
5.23. Merely to create another NGO, or some kind of entity that is going to try and convince everybody through argument, or, essentially, the play of opposition, to join a Global Cooperative Forum is never going to work. It will just be another piece of the tribal world.
5.24. Prior unity is not a union of many; it is an intrinsic unity in which there is no separateness, no differences, no others, no oppositions, no duality. It is one.

http://www.da-peace.com

1Malaysia, Slogan First, Performance Ever?

2009-06-12T00:23:00.005+08:00

We lived for 22 years under Mahathir’s iron fist regime, but hardly anybody would remember that his slogan was “Bersih, Cekap, Amanah (Clean, Efficient, Trustworthy)”. Similarly we suffered 8 years of Badawi’s administration, but I bet you that many would not be able to say his slogan "Gemilang, Terbilang, Cemerlang (Excellence, Glory and Distinction)” correctly. It took me a bit of Googling to dig it out myself.

But in barely two months our sixth Prime Minister Najib has managed to make his slogan “1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now” more recognizable than Mac Donald’s Big M symbol or Kentucky Chicken’s “Fingers licking good” slogan.

I heard that Najib paid top dollars (mind you, it was our tax money) to engage a top PR film to dress up his public image. I supposed Najib needs all the help he can get as in Malaysia’s 52 years history we have never seen a Prime Minister laden with so much unsavory allegations and with such disastrous approval ratings.

As a slogan “1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now” is ultra modern, catchy, rhymes beautifully, and more importantly it conjures up powerful images of what Malaysian’s REALLY desired for the country. It succinctly expresses Malaysian’s detest over the endemic corruption, excesses and racism that is ravaging the country. But here also lies the problem. What the slogan expresses is as far from reality as it can be.

Perhaps Najib intention is to fulfill the slogan – but the people are yet to be convinced. This powerful slogan has met with nothing but ridicule form the beginning. The worst damage was actually inflicted from within UMNO. The constant blaring of ultra racist views in state controlled media by the right wing extremist elements were like intentional sabotage to this inclusive and moderate slogan.

1Malaysia, Slogan First, Performance Ever?

I remember on the day that the slogan was announced, it was also announced that 13 people detained under the Internal Security Acts will be released. But due to red tapes and administrative snafus the ISA detainees were released a day later. The slogan was instantaneously morphed into: “1Malaysia, Slogan First, Performance Later.”

To an outsider such cynicism may seem uncalled for. But it nevertheless indicates Malaysian’s distrust of Najib capability and real intention to fulfill the slogan. And things seem to be sliding down a slippery slope from there.

Next came the naming of the new ‘clean and slim’ cabinet. I recalled that the cabinet was ‘slim down’ by only 2 persons, and were no lacking in criticisms for the many tainted characters retained in the Cabinet. The slogan became: “1Fat Cabinet, Cronies First, Performance Ever?”

Since then I have seen Najib creating special positions to reign in delinquent and rejects like Koh Tsu Khoon and Chua Sooi Lek. I am quite sure that by now the cabinet is actually larger than the already bloated Badawi’s cabinet.

Then came the continued unfolding of the saga associated with the hugely unpopular and scandalous coup in Perak. The people got so totally pissed off that the slogan became: “1BlackMalaysia, Power First, People Never”.

Now with the PKFZ scandal and disastrous 6% economy contraction exploding into the scene, I hope it will not end up in: “1ScandalMalaysia, Cronies First, Corruption Forever.”

Cynicism aside, the people are not going to see such a good slogan coming to waste. Various parties are having a good time capitalizing on it. The most famous of which is: “1BlackMalaysia, Democracy First, Elections Now.” in relation to the coup in Perak.

Imitation is the best form of flattery, so it says. The explosion of variations and imitations of the 1Malaysia slogan is a testimony on how powerful the slogan is. Perhaps Najib should have patented the slogan. I guess if Harvey Davidson is able to patent the sound of motorcycle’s exhaust, the 1Malaysia slogan can also be patented as well. Anyway with the Kangaroo court on his side, Najib should be able to sue to the last dollar anybody who attempt to ‘abuse’ his pet slogan.

Below are some variations if the 1Malaysia slogan that I have seen in the Internet. Please don’t quote me, as my memory is rather imperfect, and many are free association triggered by what I have seen. Anyway, below are some of them:

1Malaysia, 2 Chief Ministers, 3 Prime Ministers.

Everybody knows about the ridiculous 2 Chief Ministers in Perak.

I am not going to name our 3rd PM, a twisted soul, a face disfigured with much anger and hatred, and a body bloated with willful self-indulgence. She is probably the most despised woman in Malaysia.

The old fox PM1 had always been critical of PM2, and had made many damaging remarks against PM2. Now PM2 seems to be staging an all out revolt, and the two seem to be heading towards total open warfare. It makes one wonders who is actually running Malaysia.

1Indian, 2PPP, 3Hindraf.

The 1Indian is a concept proposed by MIC. Talking about MIC, the legendary Samy Vellu automatically came to mind. He is an enigma, a true eye opener to the culture of ego maniacs of the Mahathir era. Samy Vellu seems to be determined to bring MIC to the grave with him. In times to come he may very well be known as the last emperor of MIC.

Now Samy’s son Vell Paari is being primed to take over MIC. But apart from being Samy’s son, the only things I ever heard of Vell Paari are the many juicy scandals befitting of a gangster than a worthy representative of the people. In fact with Samy Vellu at the helm the whole of MIC looks more like a Mafia gang than a political party to me.

By putting forward the 1Indian idea Vell Paari may think that he is licking Najib’s ass. But just imagine the Chinese also wanted to do the 1Chinese thing, the Mamak doing the 1Mamak thing, and the 1Hakka, 1Cantonese, 1Tamil, 1Dakyat etc all joining the foray. Can you see how ridiculous the idea is?

Everybody knows what 2 PPP means. The maverick Murugiah is playing on the perception that Najib is on his side, but the incumbent Kayveas is no push over. I am waiting to see how Najib is going to handle the situation.

Now the 3 Hindraf refers to the fractioning within the Hindraf movement. I counted 3 fractions, and I suspected that there are many more. One spinster group even got themselves registered as the Makkal Shakti society. Obviously Barisan Nasional is behind them. You can see this as their ploy to corrupt the Makkal Shakti slogan, much like how the opposition is corrupting the 1Malaysia slogan. I find that a real pity, as Makkal Shakti has been such a power slogan for the people power movement.

Not Enough Indian Representatives?

Yes, the Indians are being marginalized. But it is not because there is insufficient Indian representation in the government. The real problem is that there are too many people claiming to represent the Indians; and they are literally killing each other over it.

As a matter of fact it is not just the Indians that are being marginalized. The whole system of corruption and patronage has created a society so imbalanced that only a small handful of power mongers are controlling the vast majority of the country’s wealth. It is not that these scumbags are able to consume all the wealth under their control. Their personal palaces, mistresses, fleet of sport cars and overseas shopping spree only cost some number of millions in the long run.

The bigger problem is that these people are hell bent to maximize their wealth and maintain their privileged position. They have resorted to sowing hatred and manufacturing artificial racial tensions to keep the society divided. It is causing widespread social ills that cannot be measured in dollars and cents.

Everybody is being marginalized. Even the middle class professional couples are finding it hard to make ends meet, not to mention the kampong folks and the underpaid blue collar workers. People power cannot allow for the tribal mindset and artificial division to continue. Nobody should fight for any particular race, everybody should instead stand together to fight for the common survival for all.

I am not asking everybody to become an unquestioning and cultic follower of Pakatan Rakyat. In fact there are many dubious people within Pakatan Rakyat that I do not trust any more than the Barisan Nasional goons.

The 318 tsunami was only a wake up call, and Pakatan Rakyat is only the stepping stone. People Power will eventually have to move beyond the political divide. We will need a different type of leadership. A group of fearless and incorruptible people will have to step forward to take lead and bring everybody together, regardless of race, religion and political affiliations. That will be the next paradigm shift that needs to happen, otherwise with the current rate of decay the whole society will descend into a downwards spiral sending everybody back to the middle ages.

1Malaysia, Jolly Good Slogan It is!

Below are some more variations:

1CorruptMalaysia, Money First, Power Now.
1BarisanNasional, Power First, Screw You Now.
1MACC, Cars and Cows First, PKFZ never.
1KangarooCourt, Fix Judges First, Justice Never.
1BlackCoffeeAfterWork …
1Black Café …

You see, the slogan is so versatile that you can mix and match a small number of key phrases to come up with virtually infinite variation of it. It can be used in the commercial sector as well – for example:

1HeavenlyResort, Luxury First, Heavenly Service Now.
1TandooHouse, Good Taste First, Gratification Now.

1Malaysia. Jolly good slogan it is!

Pete, You Don’t Owe Malaysia an Apology

2009-05-21T22:57:00.002+08:00

In response to My most sincere apology to the nation by Raja Petra Kamarudin

Dear Pete,

I don’t think anybody can be hold accountable for something that his or her 32 years old son did. While I understand the plight that you have to go through as a parent, I don’t think you owe anybody an apology.

The way you handled the situation – of facing it squarely, not giving in to the temptation to bribery, is setting a shining example for all Malaysian. If anything at all, everybody who ever participated in bribery in any form owes you an apology.

I am one who should offer you an apology. I am one who lost counts on the number of times in which I settle speeding and other offences ‘on the spot’ with the police. I am one who participated in and propagated and the culture of corruption in Malaysia. I knew how easy it is to give in to the temptation of doing it the easy way. Your example put me to shame. It should put many people to shame.

But I also like to let you know that I have stopped doing that. It took me almost half a life time to learn some fundamental things about not going with the flow, not taking the easy way out, and standing up and speaking out against what is wrong.

It feels good to do so. For the first time in my life I felt hope for Malaysia and for humanity altogether. For the first time I felt a sense of purpose for Malaysia. The purposefulness came from knowing that I am not an innocent victim, that I have the responsibility and the power to change those around me. For that I have to thank you for being the pioneer, for being the voice that awakened me from stupor.

You don’t owe me an apology Pete. But gratitude and appreciation I have plenty for you.

I don't know where you are now but I hope one day I can work with you. I hope soon you will be able to come out of hiding; where you and your family don’t have to live under constant threat. I hope soon we can provide you with a safe circumstance so that you can enjoy a normal family life.

People power ultimately is beyond the political agenda. It is primarily about going beyond our tribal mindset so that we can collectively and cooperatively provide a safe and sane circumstance for all.

Is the ball really in the Sultan's Court now?

2009-05-19T00:11:00.005+08:00

Mahathir and the Age of ISA

If I were to describe Tun Dr. Mahathir with one sentence, it would be: “My way or the Kamunting way”. Mahathir era can be termed the era of the Internal Security Act (ISA). He perfected the ‘art’ of ISA detention. He pushed it to the max, and utilized it to the max.

The word ‘art’ is only is only a figure of speech. Dr Mahathir never cares about being artful or aesthetic. He is completely unabashed about what he did. He is too proud to lie, too proud to have to justify his action. ISA is a perfect vehicle for him. Everybody and anybody can be detained without trial. Nothing needs to be explained, and nothing needs to be justified.

Now take a look at what Mahathir has to say about the Perak stalemate: Dr M: Pakatan will win Perak snap polls (Malaysiakini May 14)

First, the 83-year-old former BN chieftain said there was no need to hold a fresh election in Perak in order to resolve the political impasse in the state. But he quickly added that it was a ‘forgone conclusion' that Pakatan Rakyat would win if an election is held.

"I think the opposition... well not the opposition... I think that Pakatan is going to win. So why have an election?...

Instead of fresh polls, Mahathir said the right process now is for the state assembly to sit and move a motion of no-confidence against Nizar.

What Tun Dr. Mahathir saying is that he knows Pakatan Rakyat is going to win a snap poll, so he is not going to play it that way. He will only play it the way he is sure that HE can win.

It doesn’t matter to him that the High Court has already ruled that Nizar is still the legitimate Chief Minister of Perak. It doesn’t matter that the legality of the ‘new’ speaker Ganesan is in doubt. For him the ‘right’ process is for the state assembly to sit and move a motion of no-confidence against Nizar.

Is it ‘right’ as in being legal and constitutional? That is never Mahathir concern. It is ‘right’ because he said so. It is ‘right’ because he can win. That is Mahatharism.

But what about public opinion? "I hope people have short memories" was his reply. For Mahathir the people never matters. They can be easily hoodwinked, brought over, suppressed and coerced.

Perak Fiasco – Is the ball in the Sultan’s Court now?

Now take a look at what Najib has to say about the Perak fiasco: BN does not fear fresh elections in Perak

The Barisan Nasional (BN) is not afraid of facing the people should there be a fresh state election in Perak, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today. We are ready to face the people…"

The prime minister reiterated that it was up to the Sultan of Perak Sultan Azlan Shah to decide whether a fresh election should be held for Perak…

Have you noticed how Najib has been absolving himself from the Perak scene? Let me remind you how proud he was as being the commander in chief in engineering the coup in Perak.

Did you see the stark contrast between Mahathir ‘way’ and Najib’s ‘way’?

The statements by Mahathir and Najib were given on the same day. The contradiction between Mahathir’s statement and Najib’s statement is as stark as it can be. Mahathir’s unabashed frankness makes Najib looks so shady, phony and puny. Mahathir’s statement made a mockery of Najib’s.

So Perak is the Sultan prerogative as claimed by Najib? I am not so sure.

Najib is all eager to appear ‘good’, ‘reasonable’ and ‘civilized’ in the eyes of the people. His way of dealing with issues is through lies, denial and scapegoats. I believe that Najib is merely makeing a scapegoat out of the Monarchy.

My opinion is that the biggest loser in the Perak saga is perhaps the Monarchy. The High Court ruling, which clearly states that Sultan Azlan Shah had acted unconstitutionally in sacking Nizar was bad enough. But even more damaging is how Najib has been dragging the monarchy into the picture every step along the way in the Perak fiasco, creating the perception that the monarchy is in cohort with UNMO in the whole event.

I wondered you noticed that the Monarchy had all but kept quiet through the whole saga. But even so UMNO had been ultra eager to come to its 'defense'. Nizar and Pakatan Rakyat were labeled treacherous to the monarchy and crowned enemy No. 1 to the Malay race. Many people were charged under the sedition act for voicing out their discontent of the Monarchy.

While I do not presume to know why the Monarchy is maintaining silence on such a grave matter, it is completely obviously to me that Najib has no interest to protect the monarchy.

The public opinion on the Perak coup is undeniably obvious, as indicated by a NTV7 poll which showed that 99% of the respondents wanted fresh election for Perak. The anger of the rakyat towards Najib is abundantly clear, to the point other component parties of Barisan Nasional are voicing for a fresh poll in Perak.

Najib’s tactics of constantly dragging the Monarchy into the picture is sinister to say the least. Najib may have intended to make use of the Monarchy to lend legitimacy to its actions in Perak, but it only managed to get the monarchy to share the public blames and angers.

Sultan Azlan Shah may have made an error in sacking Nizar as being the Chief Minister, but all the rest – the defections of the three frogs, the subsequent court cases, the farcical May 7 state assembly sitting, the crack down of dissidents etc, are all the work of Najib.

Even right now, is the ball in the Sultan’s court as claimed by Najib? My understanding is that the sultan cannot order the dissolution of the state assembly, just as he has no power to sack the chief minister. The ball is still very much in UMNO’s court.

This is my understanding of the constitution anyway. If anything at all, the past grueling four months had thought me a lot about separation of powers. It has been a live lesson on how screwed up and corrupted the Malaysian political system is.

Many probably find the silence of the monarchy regarding this important matter very disquieting. Many had looked toward the monarchy for voice of sanity in the midst of the current chaos. My sincere hope is that HRS Sultan Azlan Shah will break the silence and make a clear stand in due time and lead Perak out of the current mayhem.

ISA is Fading Away - but What's Next?

The Internal Security Act has gain so much notoriety under our former Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar that practically the whole country is revolting against it. The circumstances in which Syed Hamid invoked the ISA were so ridiculous that it was almost comical. Incidents like the detention of a young reporter for her own ‘protection’ will surely pass down in folklore and the Alternate Annal of Malaysia Politics.

The current public sentiment is that ISA can no longer be invoked against the opposition parties without provoking major backlash from the people. ISA is no longer unchallengeable as can be seen by Hindraf leader Uthayakumar defying his condition of release from ISA as reported in Malaysiakini. We shall see how Hishammuddin is going to response to such open challenge.

Syed Hamid has made himself so unpopular by his indiscriminate use of the ISA that his political career is buried for good. Now let see how long is Hishammuddin able to stay in this hot seat.

For all intent and purpose, the era of ISA heralded by Mahathir is all but gone. For tyrannical acts like ISA to work, it will require an almost total blockage of free expression – like in communist China now, or Malaysia during Mahathir era. In this era of internet and cell phones it is impossible to exercise such tyrannical power with causing total uproar from the people.

This is not time to rejoice yet – for I was alarmed by the large number of people charged under the sedition acts and illegal gatherings. Lets hope that this is not the beginning of the era of the Sedition Act.

Oh Najib, what have you done?

Swine Flu, Bird Flu - Political Lies and Media Disinformation

2009-05-06T07:58:00.008+08:00

No-one yet knows whether swine flu will become a global pandemic, but it is becoming clear where it came from – most likely a giant pig factory farm run by an American multinational corporation in Veracruz, Mexico.

These factory farms are disgusting and dangerous, and they're rapidly multiplying. Thousands of pigs are brutally crammed into dirty warehouses and sprayed with a cocktail of drugs -- posing a health risk to more than just our food -- they and their manure lagoons create the perfect conditions to breed dangerous new viruses like swine flu.

Read on:

Political Lies and Media Disinformation regarding the Swine Flu Pandemic

Flying Pigs, Tamiflu and Factory Farms

What's Missing From Every Media Story about H1N1 Influenza

Sign the Petition

Let's call on the United Nations World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation to investigate and regulate these farms to protect global health. Big agrobusiness will try to obstruct any attempts at reform, so we need a massive outcry that health authorities can't ignore.

You can participate by signing the petition organized by Avaaz.org.

Sign the Petition

CIMB housing loan owner - Beware

2009-04-26T15:35:00.004+08:00

I received a letter from CIMB about 2 weeks ago, offering an insurance policy to protect our house from landslides. Another junk mail I thought, so I chucked the letter into the recycle bin without a second thought. Then my wife picked it up and noticed that there is an "Opt Out Instruction Form" at the bottom.

On closer inspection, the letter actually states that if I do not sign and return the "Opt Out Instruction Form", the additional protection will be automatically included into my insurance policy.

Something is clearly not right here. Why should I have suffer the inconvenience of having to go to a post office to cancel something that I did not asked for. If somehow I missed it - as I almost did, I will be charged additional fees for something that I do not need. Most of us will not even notice the increase in premiums when the insurance fee is charged to the account.

So I called up the help line:

Operator: Which branch did you open you account? You will have to call your branch and they will help you to sort it out.

Me: No, I don't want to make another call. You mean it is not originated from HQ, and HQ has no control over your branches? If that is the case I want to lodge a report against the branch for unethical practices ...

So I got the operator to take down my details, and got her to promise to sort it out for me. A few minutes later, the operator called back.

Operator: This is their number, XXXXXXXXX. Please give them a call tomorrow ...

Me: Who are 'them'?

Operator: Allianz General Insurance Company ...

Me: No I don't want to call Allianz. As far as I am concerned, my housing loan is with CIMB, with the insurance and insurer pre-arranged, I don't even have a say on that. The letter is issued by CIMB. I hold CIMB responsible for this...

------------------------------

I got the operator to promise to sort it out for me. But to be sure, I will still post the 'Opt Out' form. It's a 10 minutes walk to the post office for me, but such is life in Malaysia.

This is definitely an unethical business practice. I can bet you that many people will simply chuck the letter away - and ended up paying a premium for something that they do not need. Most will not even notice the premium increase!

I am contemplating lodging a report to the consumer association.

Chicken ala Carte

2009-04-23T09:40:00.007+08:00

View this movie at cultureunplugged.com

This is the winner of 56th Berlin Film Festival for best short story, it is also the most viewed entry at Culture Unplugged.

The backdrop of the story is poverty and imbalance in wealth distribution, but the essential message is the simple love and caring in the humblest circumstance.

This is a simply story, an everyday happening right at our backyard. But one cannot help but be touched, because the unnamed impulse to love and to share is inherent in all being, always yearning to break free. And loving and caring for one another does not require a lot of material resources.

This is the type of heart awakening that is require to turn around the profound crisis that humanity is facing now. I think this film will make an excellent theme for the people power movement.

The Pirates of Somalia - a Different Tale

2009-04-18T16:34:00.003+08:00

Somalia: You Are Being Lied to About Pirates

by Johann Hari
Global Research

Who imagined that in 2009, the world's governments would be declaring a new War on Pirates? As you read this, the British Royal Navy - backed by the ships of more than two dozen nations, from the US to China - is sailing into Somalian waters to take on men we still picture as parrot-on-the-shoulder pantomime villains. They will soon be fighting Somalian ships and even chasing the pirates onto land, into one of the most broken countries on earth. But behind the arrr-me-hearties oddness of this tale, there is an untold scandal. The people our governments are labeling as "one of the great menace of our times" have an extraordinary story to tell -- and some justice on their side.

Pirates have never been quite who we think they are. In the "golden age of piracy" - from 1650 to 1730 - the idea of the pirate as the senseless, savage thief that lingers today was created by the British government in a great propaganda-heave. Many ordinary people believed it was false: pirates were often rescued from the gallows by supportive crowds. Why? What did they see that we can't? In his book Villains of All nations, the historian Marcus Rediker pores through the evidence to find out. If you became a merchant or navy sailor then - plucked from the docks of London's East End, young and hungry - you ended up in a floating wooden Hell. You worked all hours on a cramped, half-starved ship, and if you slacked off for a second, the all-powerful captain would whip you with the Cat O' Nine Tails. If you slacked consistently, you could be thrown overboard. And at the end of months or years of this, you were often cheated of your wages.

Pirates were the first people to rebel against this world. They mutinied against their tyrannical captains - and created a different way of working on the seas. Once they had a ship, the pirates elected their captains, and made all their decisions collectively. They shared their bounty out in what Rediker calls "one of the most egalitarian plans for the disposition of resources to be found anywhere in the eighteenth century." They even took in escaped African slaves and lived with them as equals. The pirates showed "quite clearly - and subversively - that ships did not have to be run in the brutal and oppressive ways of the merchant service and the Royal navy." This is why they were popular, despite being unproductive thieves.

The words of one pirate from that lost age - a young British man called William Scott - should echo into this new age of piracy. Just before he was hanged in Charleston, South Carolina, he said: "What I did was to keep me from perishing. I was forced to go a-pirating to live." In 1991, the government of Somalia - in the Horn of Africa - collapsed. Its nine million people have been teetering on starvation ever since - and many of the ugliest forces in the Western world have seen this as a great opportunity to steal the country's food supply and dump our nuclear waste in their seas.

Yes: nuclear waste. As soon as the government was gone, mysterious European ships started appearing off the coast of Somalia, dumping vast barrels into the ocean. The coastal population began to sicken. At first they suffered strange rashes, nausea and malformed babies. Then, after the 2005 tsunami, hundreds of the dumped and leaking barrels washed up on shore. People began to suffer from radiation sickness, and more than 300 died. Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN envoy to Somalia, tells me: "Somebody is dumping nuclear material here. There is also lead, and heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury - you name it." Much of it can be traced back to European hospitals and factories, who seem to be passing it on to the Italian mafia to "dispose" of cheaply. When I asked Ould-Abdallah what European governments were doing about it, he said with a sigh: "Nothing. There has been no clean-up, no compensation, and no prevention." (empasis added)

At the same time, other European ships have been looting Somalia's seas of their greatest resource: seafood. We have destroyed our own fish-stocks by over-exploitation - and now we have moved on to theirs. More than $300m worth of tuna, shrimp, lobster and other sea-life is being stolen every year by vast trawlers illegally sailing into Somalia's unprotected seas. The local fishermen have suddenly lost their livelihoods, and they are starving. Mohammed Hussein, a fisherman in the town of Marka 100km south of Mogadishu, told Reuters: "If nothing is done, there soon won't be much fish left in our coastal waters."

This is the context in which the men we are calling "pirates" have emerged. Everyone agrees they were ordinary Somalian fishermen who at first took speedboats to try to dissuade the dumpers and trawlers, or at least wage a 'tax' on them. They call themselves the Volunteer Coastguard of Somalia - and it's not hard to see why. In a surreal telephone interview, one of the pirate leaders, Sugule Ali, said their motive was "to stop illegal fishing and dumping in our waters... We don't consider ourselves sea bandits. We consider sea bandits [to be] those who illegally fish and dump in our seas and dump waste in our seas and carry weapons in our seas." William Scott would understand those words.

No, this doesn't make hostage-taking justifiable, and yes, some are clearly just gangsters - especially those who have held up World Food Programme supplies. But the "pirates" have the overwhelming support of the local population for a reason. The independent Somalian news-site WardherNews conducted the best research we have into what ordinary Somalis are thinking - and it found 70 percent "strongly supported the piracy as a form of national defence of the country's territorial waters." During the revolutionary war in America, George Washington and America's founding fathers paid pirates to protect America's territorial waters, because they had no navy or coastguard of their own. Most Americans supported them. Is this so different?

Did we expect starving Somalians to stand passively on their beaches, paddling in our nuclear waste, and watch us snatch their fish to eat in restaurants in London and Paris and Rome? We didn't act on those crimes - but when some of the fishermen responded by disrupting the transit-corridor for 20 percent of the world's oil supply, we begin to shriek about "evil." If we really want to deal with piracy, we need to stop its root cause - our crimes - before we send in the gun-boats to root out Somalia's criminals.

The story of the 2009 war on piracy was best summarised by another pirate, who lived and died in the fourth century BC. He was captured and brought to Alexander the Great, who demanded to know "what he meant by keeping possession of the sea." The pirate smiled, and responded: "What you mean by seizing the whole earth; but because I do it with a petty ship, I am called a robber, while you, who do it with a great fleet, are called emperor." Once again, our great imperial fleets sail in today - but who is the robber?

Johann Hari is a writer for the Independent newspaper.

An Unsuppressable Defiance

2009-03-17T23:04:00.008+08:00

The Chinese government began a new internet censorship campaign last year called "Harmony", ostensibly aimed at combating "vulgarity and pornography" on the Chinese web. However, it has been used most often to shut down Blogs and discussion forums (like this one), including those that only mildly criticize the government.

So enter the "Grass-Mud Horse", or "Cao-ni-ma". Here are some popular depictions:

As you can see, there are even cute Grass-Mud-Horse dolls, and now there is a music video with Chinese children singing:

There is a herd of Grass Mud Horses
In the wild and beautiful Ma Le Desert (Gobi Desert)
They are lively and intelligent
they are fun-loving and nimble
They live freely in the Ma Le Desert
They are courageous, tenacious, and overcome the difficult environment

Oh lying down Grass Mud Horse
Oh running wild Grass Mud Horse
They defeated river crabs in order to protect their grass land
River crabs forever disappeared from Ma Le Desert

...Well, as it goes in Chinese, "Grass-Mud-Horse" is legal to say, of course, but "Cao-ni-ma(草泥马)" also sounds like "F*** your mother". And "River Crabs(河蟹)" sounds like "Harmony(和谐)" (the government's censorship program)! The "Ma Le Desert(马勒戈壁Gobi Desert)" is "your mother's private part".

This all "loses a lot in the translation" but in Chinese it is hilarious, especially when it sounds like children are singing about a cute horse that just wants to be free.

The Cao-ni-ma movement is spreading like wild fire in China. Top intellectuals and artists are getting involved. Many variations of the song appeared and are sang publicly. There are also many artistic renderings, toys, dolls etc.

The intended meaning of the punt may seems to be vulgar, but one simply could not help cracking up at its cleverness. What came across is the purity, innocence, humor and ingenuity. It defies any form of tyrannical suppression. It made a mockery of the oppressors. It is simply an unstoppable force of truth that will touch many hearts and souls.

Such is people power at its best. This is the type ingenuity and purity required to break through the dense darkness that is enveloping the world at present.

We are going to need something like this urgently in Malaysia. The recent development in Malaysia politics sent chills up my spine. I can feel that the Barisan Nasional machinery will stage an all out onslaught on Pakatan Rakyat with end game brutality, until it is beaten lifeless like Kugan.

With the Barisan Nasional government subjugation of the Executive, Judiciary, Legislative and Police institutions. People power is all that we have to protect our hard won fledging democracy. Direct righteous confrontations will have it place. But I believe we will need something pure and humorous like Cao-ni-ma to diffuse the darkness of the situations and to reach out to the masses.

Cao-ni-ma is light years ahead of our "Altantuya Mongolia" song (sang in the tune of "When the Saint go marching in"). I am sure that we have enough talent to match this. I will personally donate RM 100, plus do a personal fund raiser with my old boys association to anybody who can create something that matches Cao-ni-ma. Maybe something about a crocodile named Isa. Any takers?

People Power shall prevail. Our inherent unity shall prevail. This is the time for it. This is the only force that can righten the profound ills in our world today.

Before I pen off, I would like to offer to the following:

A Cao-ni-ma to Be End, let its ending come swift and painless.

Two Cao-ni-ma to um....No. Lets banish this rotten no-no to Ma Le Desert.

Three Cao-ni-ma to stinky Najis and Rosie Mama, direct from Ma Le Desert, the homeland of Altantuya. Lets Cao-ni-ma prevail till justice is served.

"Something new must emerge ..... A new mode of social contract ...., an egoless mode ...... based on cooperation, tolerance and universal participation and accountability. " Adi Da, Not-Two IS Peace

Catastrophic Fall in 2009 Global Food Production

2009-02-18T19:37:00.008+08:00

Global Research, February 10, 2009

by Eric deCarbonnel
Market Oracle

After reading about the droughts in two major agricultural countries, China and Argentina, I decided to research the extent other food producing nations were also experiencing droughts. This project ended up taking a lot longer than I thought. 2009 looks to be a humanitarian disaster around much of the world

To understand the depth of the food Catastrophe that faces the world this year, consider the graphic below depicting countries by USD value of their agricultural output, as of 2006.

Now, consider the same graphic with the countries experiencing droughts highlighted.

The countries that make up two thirds of the world's agricultural output are experiencing drought conditions. Whether you watch a video of the drought in China, Australia, Africa, South America, or the US , the scene will be the same: misery, ruined crop, and dying cattle.

China

The drought in Northern China, the worst in 50 years, is worsening, and summer harvest is now threatened. The area of affected crops has expanded to 161 million mu (was 141 million last week), and 4.37 million people and 2.1 million livestock are facing drinking water shortage. The scarcity of rain in some parts of the north and central provinces is the worst in recorded history.

The drought which started in November threatens over half the wheat crop in eight provinces - Hebei, Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi and Gansu.

Henan
China's largest crop producing province, Henan, has issued the highest-level drought warning. Henan has received an average rainfall of 10.5 millimeters since November 2008, almost 80 percent less than in the same period in the previous years. The Henan drought, which began in November, is the most severe since 1951.

Anhui
Anhui Province issued a red drought alert, with more than 60 percent of the crops north of the Huaihe River plagued by a major drought.

Shanxi
Shanxi Province was put on orange drought alert on Jan. 21, with one million people and 160,000 heads of livestock are facing water shortage.

Jiangsu
Jiangsu province has already lost over one fifth of the wheat crops affected by drought. Local agricultural departments are diverting water from nearby rivers in an emergency effort to save the rest.

Hebei
Over 100 million cubic meters of water has been channeled in from outside the province to fight Hebei's drought.

Shaanxi
1.34 million acres of crops across the bone-dry Shanxi province are affected by the worsening drought.

Shandong
Since last November, Shandong province has experienced 73 percent less rain than the same period in previous years, with little rainfall forecast for the future.

Relief efforts are under way. The Chinese government has allocated 86.7 billion yuan (about $12.69 billion) to drought-hit areas. Authorities have also resorted to cloud-seeding, and some areas received a sprinkling of rain after clouds were hit with 2,392 rockets and 409 cannon shells loaded with chemicals. However, there is a limit to what can be done in the face of such widespread water shortage.

As I have previously written, China is facing hyperinflation , and this record drought will make things worse. China produces 18% of the world's grain each year.

Australia

Australia has been experiencing an unrelenting drought since 2004, and 41 percent of Australia's agriculture continues to suffer from the worst drought in 117 years of record-keeping. The drought has been so severe that rivers stopped flowing, lakes turned toxic, and farmers abandoned their land in frustration:

A) The Murray River stopped flowing at its terminal point, and its mouth has closed up.
B) Australia's lower lakes are evaporating, and they are now a meter (3.2 feet) below sea level. If these lakes evaporate any further, the soil and the mud system below the water is going to be exposed to the air. The mud will then acidify, releasing sulfuric acid and a whole range of heavy metals. After this occurs, those lower lake systems will essentially become a toxic swamp which will never be able to be recovered. The Australian government's only options to prevent this are to allow salt water in, creating a dead sea, or to pray for rain.

For some reason, the debate over climate change is essentially over in Australia.

The United States

California
California is facing its worst drought in recorded history . The drought is predicted to be the most severe in modern times, worse than those in 1977 and 1991. Thousands of acres of row crops already have been fallowed, with more to follow. The snowpack in the Northern Sierra, home to some of the state's most important reservoirs, proved to be just 49 percent of average. Water agencies throughout the state are scrambling to adopt conservation mandates.

Texas
The Texan drought is reaching historic proportion . Dry conditions near Austin and San Antonio have been exceeded only once before—the drought of 1917-18. 88 percent of Texas is experiencing abnormally dry conditions, and 18 percent of the state is in either extreme or exceptional drought conditions. The drought areas have been expanding almost every month. Conditions in Texas are so bad cattle are keeling over in parched pastures and dying. Lack of rainfall has left pastures barren, and cattle producers have resorted to feeding animals hay. Irreversible damage has been done to winter wheat crops in Texas. Both short and long-term forecasts don't call for much rain at all, which means the Texas drought is set to get worse.

Augusta Region (Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina)
The Augusta region has been suffering from a worsening two year drought. Augusta's rainfall deficit is already approaching 2 inches so far in 2009, with January being the driest since 1989.

Florida
Florida has been hard hit by winter drought, damaging crops, and half of state is in some level of a drought.

La Niña likely to make matters worse
Enough water a couple of degrees cooler than normal has accumulated in the eastern part of the Pacific to create a La Niña, a weather pattern expected to linger until at least the spring. La Niña generally means dry weather for Southern states, which is exactly what the US doesn't need right now.

South America

Argentina
The worst drought in half a century has turned Argentina's once-fertile soil to dust and pushed the country into a state of emergency. Cow carcasses litter the prairie fields, and sun-scorched soy plants wither under the South American summer sun. Argentina's food production is set to go down a minimum of 50 percent, maybe more. The country's wheat yield for 2009 will be 8.7 million metric tons, down from 16.3 million in 2008. Concern with domestic shortages (domestic wheat consumption being approximately 6.7 million metric ton), Argentina has granted no new export applications since mid January .

Brazil
Brazil has cut its outlook for the crops and will do so again after assessing damage to plants from desiccation in drought-stricken regions. Brazil is the world's second-biggest exporter of soybeans and third-largest for corn.

Brazil's numbers for corn harvesting:

Harvested in 2008: 58.7 million tons
January 8 forecast: 52.3 million tons
February 6 forecast: 50.3 metric tons (optimistic)
Harvested in 2009: ???

Paraguay
Severe drought affecting Paraguay's economy has pushed the government to declare agricultural emergency. Crops that have direct impact on cattle food are ruined, and the soy plantations have been almost totally lost in some areas.

Uruguay
Uruguay declared an "agriculture emergency" last month, due to the worst drought in decades which is threatening crops, livestock and the provision of fresh produce.
The a worsening drought is pushing up food and beverage costs causing Uruguay's consumer prices to rise at the fastest annual pace in more than four years in January.

Bolivia
There hasn't been a drop of rain in Bolivia in nearly a year. Cattle dying, crops ruined, etc…

Chile
The severe drought affecting Chile has caused an agricultural emergency in 50 rural districts, and large sectors of the economy are concerned about possible electricity rationing in March. The countries woes stem from the "La Niña" climate phenomenon which has over half of Chile dangling by a thread: persistently cold water in the Pacific ocean along with high atmospheric pressure are preventing rain-bearing fronts from entering central and southern areas of the country. As a result, the water levels at hydroelectric dams and other reservoirs are at all-time lows.

Horn of Africa

Africa faces food shortages and famine . Food production across the Horn of Africa has suffered because of the lack of rainfall. Also, half the agricultural soil has lost nutrients necessary to grow plant, and the declining soil fertility across Africa is exacerbating drought related crop losses.

Kenya
Kenya is the worst hit nation in the region, having been without rainfall for 18 months. Kenya needs to import food to bridge a shortfall and keep 10 million of its people from starvation. Kenya's drought suffering neighbors will be of little help.

Tanzania
A poor harvest due to drought has prompted Tanzania to stop issuing food export permits. Tanzania has also intensified security at the border posts to monitor and prevent the export of food. There are 240,000 people in need of immediate relief food in Tanzania.

Burundi
Crops in the north of Burundi have withered, leaving the tiny East African country facing a severe food shortage

Uganda
Severe drought in northeastern Uganda's Karamoja region has the left the country on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. The dry conditions and acute food shortages, which have left Karamoja near starvation, are unlikely to improve before October when the next harvest is due.

South Africa
South Africa faces a potential crop shortage after wheat farmers in the eastern part of the Free State grain belt said they were likely to produce their lowest crop in 30 years this year. South Africans are "extremely angry" that food prices continue to rise.

Other African nations suffering from drought in 2009 are: Malawi, Zambia, Swaziland, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tunisia, Angola, and Ethiopia.

Middle East and Central Asia

The Middle East and Central Asia are suffering from the worst droughts in recent history , and food grain production has dropped to some of the lowest levels in decades. Total wheat production in the wider drought-affected region is currently estimated to have declined by at least 22 percent in 2009. Owing to the drought's severity and region-wide scope, irrigation supplies from reservoirs, rivers, and groundwater have been critically reduced. Major reservoirs in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria are all at low levels requiring restrictions on usage. Given the severity of crop losses in the region, a major shortage of planting seed for the 2010 crop is expected.

Iraq
In Iraq during the winter grain growing period, there was essentially no measurable rainfall in many regions, and large swaths of rain-fed fields across northern Iraq simply went unplanted. These primarily rain-fed regions in northern Iraq are described as an agricultural disaster area this year, with wheat production falling 80-98 percent from normal levels. The USDA estimates total wheat production in Iraq in 2009 at 1.3 million tons, down 45 percent from last year.

Syria
Syria is experienced its worst drought in the past 18 years, and the USDA estimates total wheat production in Syria in 2009 at 2.0 million tons, down 50 percent from last year. Last summer, the taps ran dry in many neighborhoods of Damascus and residents of the capital city were forced to buy water on the black market. The severe lack of rain this winter has exacerbated the problem.

Afghanistan
Lack of rainfall has led Afghanistan to the worst drought conditions in the past 10 years. The USDA estimates 2008/09 wheat production in Afghanistan at 1.5 million tons, down 2.3 million or 60 percent from last year. Afghanistan normally produces 3.5-4.0 million tons of wheat annually.

Jordan
Jordan's persistent drought has grown worse, with almost no rain falling on the kingdom this year. The Jordanian government has stopped pumping water to farms to preserve the water for drinking purposes.

Other Middle Eastern and Central Asian nations suffering from drought in 2009 are: The Palestinian Territories, Lebanon, Israel, Bangladesh, Myanmar, India, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Thailand, Nepal, Pakistan, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Cyprus, and Iran.

Lack of credit will worsen food shortage

A lack of credit for farmers curbed their ability to buy seeds and fertilizers in 2008/2009 and will limit production around the world. The effects of droughts worldwide will also be amplified by the smaller amount of seeds and fertilizers used to grow crops.

Low commodity prices will worsen food shortage

The low prices at the end of 2008 discouraged the planting of new crops in 2009. In Kansas for example, farmers seeded nine million acres, the smallest planting for half a century. Wheat plantings this year are down about 4 million acres across the US and about 1.1 million acres in Canada. So even discounting drought related losses, the US, Canada, and other food producing nations are facing lower agricultural output in 2009.

Europe will not make up for the food shortfall

Europe, the only big agricultural region relatively unaffected by drought, is set for a big drop in food production. Due to the combination of a late plantings, poorer soil conditions, reduced inputs, and light rainfall, Europe's agricultural output is likely to fall by 10 to 15 percent.

Stocks of foodstuff are dangerously low

Low stocks of foodstuff make the world's falling agriculture output particularly worrisome. The combined averaged of the ending stock levels of the major trading countries of Australia, Canada, United States, and the European Union have been declining steadily in the last few years:

2002-2005: 47.4 million tons
2007: 37.6 million tons
2008: 27.4 million tons

These inventory numbers are dangerously low, especially considering the horrifying possibility that China's 60 million tons of grain reserves doesn't actually exists .

Global food Catastrophe

The world is heading for a drop in agricultural production of 20 to 40 percent, depending on the severity and length of the current global droughts. Food producing nations are imposing food export restrictions. Food prices will soar, and, in poor countries with food deficits, millions will starve.

The deflation debate should end now

The droughts plaguing the world's biggest agricultural regions should end the debate about deflation in 2009. The demand for agricultural commodities is relatively immune to developments in the business cycles (at least compared to that of energy or base metals), and, with a 20 to 40 percent decline in world production, already rising food prices are headed significantly higher.

In fact, agricultural commodities NEED to head higher and soon, to prevent even greater food shortages and famine. The price of wheat, corn, soybeans, etc must rise to a level which encourages the planting of every available acre with the best possible fertilizers. Otherwise, if food prices stay at their current levels, production will continue to fall, sentencing millions more to starvation.

Competitive currency appreciation

Some observers are anticipating “competitive currency devaluations” in addition to deflation for 2009 (nations devalue their currencies to help their export sector). The coming global food shortage makes this highly unlikely. Depreciating their currency in the current environment will produce the unwanted consequence of boosting exports—of food. Even with export restrictions like those in China, currency depreciation would cause the outflow of significant quantities of grain via the black market.

Instead of “competitive currency devaluations”, spiking food prices will likely cause competitive currency appreciation in 2009. Foreign exchange reserves exist for just this type of emergency . Central banks around the world will lower domestic food prices by either directly selling off their reserves to appreciate their currencies or by using them to purchase grain on the world market.

Appreciating a currency is the fastest way to control food inflation. A more valuable currency allows a nation to monopolize more global resources (ie: the overvalued dollar allows the US to consume 25% of the world's oil despite having only 4% of the world's population). If China were to selloff its US reserves, its enormous population would start sucking up the world's food supply like the US has been doing with oil.

On the flip side, when a nation appreciates its currency and starts consuming more of the world's resources, it leaves less for everyone else. So when china appreciates the yuan, food shortages worldwide will increase and prices everywhere else will jump upwards. As there is nothing that breeds social unrest like soaring food prices, nations around the world, from Russia, to the EU, to Saudi Arabia, to India, will sell off their foreign reserves to appreciate their currencies and reduce the cost of food imports. In response to this, China will sell even more of its reserves and so on. That is competitive currency appreciation.

When faced with competitive currency appreciation, you do NOT want to be the world's reserve currency. The dollar is likely to do very poorly as central banks liquidate trillions in US holdings to buy food and appreciate their currencies.

By Eric deCarbonnel
http://www.marketskeptics.com

Eric is the Editor of Market Skeptics

Oh Najib, what have you done?

2009-02-08T16:20:00.009+08:00

One of my favorite jokes goes like this: If 2 Malays get together, they will form a political party. If 3 Indians get together, they will form a workers union. If 4 Chinese get together, they will ---------- play mahjong!

The joke is innocent enough, but poignantly illustrates a maddening trait of the Chinese race. The Chinese as a race has gone through an un-proportionally high number of man made and natural calamity in its span of history. This cultivates the pervasive mind-your-own-business and keep-peace-at-all-cost mentality. You can insult them as being squatters, threaten them with a weapon, they will swallow the insult as long as there is some bread crumbs left for them to make a living.

It is virtually impossible to motivate the Chinese to do anything other than making money, as 50 years of DAP struggle can testify. The 308 tsunami got them somewhat excited. But even so you won’t see many Chinese in various rallies and anti-government protests. Their first instinct is to protect the rice bowl. There is nothing you could do to get them away from their comfort zone. But all of that changed over the past few days, with the unfolding of the coup in Perak.

Najib may seem to have won the battle in Perak, but he made a very serious tactical mistake. It can prove to be a very deadly mistake indeed. Najib, being so immersed in the Malay Ultra culture surrounded by yes-man Chinese, is completely unaware of a taboo; an un-crossable line in the Chinese psyche. In his desperation to gain back some morale after a string of humiliations he committed the worst offence in the eyes of Chinese.

The Chinese are not what they seem on the surface. Nobody is what they seem on the surface for that matter. Whatever a certain character trait is overtly demonstrated on the surface, you can be sure that the complete opposite is lurking in the shadow.
The seemly peace loving Chinese are not all that benign under the hood. It can be seen in the pervasive triad culture, the kung fu culture, the patriotic literature, even in its religion. The most popular god for Chinese is not Buddha the transcendental one; not Guan Yin the goddess of mercy; but Lord Guan, the god of war, the legendary general revered for his absolute loyalty and righteousness.

The bloody history of China was spotted with numerous upraising against foreign invaders and tyrants and oppressors. The secret societies’ heroic deeds are enshrined in literature and folklore, and the virtues of righteousness and absolutely loyalty sworn with blood are deified in Lord Guan. By the same token the traitors that sell out their own race are similarly enshrined in history to be cursed for eternity. Such is the dark hidden aspect of the Chinese psyche. The Chinese have no qualms about shaking hands with you even if you are a murderer. Money comes first; the rest is none of their business. But betrayal, especially betrayal of the race is an absolute taboo, an unforgivable sin.

Najib, in his haste to win Perak, has created one such unforgivable sinner in the person of Hee Yit Foong. In doing so he put himself in the position of a corrupt tyrant. The stage is set and all the actors in place: the villain Najib, the traitor Hee, and the unexpected rise of Nazir as the grassroot kung-fu hero. The racial memory is awakened and the Chinese finally united and up in arms for an epic struggle. PAS and DAP comradeship was never so strongly cemented.

Well done Najib, you managed to achieved what DAP could not do in 50 years. The hatred for Hee will be forever tied to you. No amount of sweet talk can get you out of this. No amount of money can buy you out of this. I am not sure how the collective hatred will manifest, but it will be a very ugly reality for you. It will be as dirty as the techniques you used to siege Perak.

Look at it objectively; the coup in Perak is really only a storm in the tea cup. It is nothing close to the Manchurian invasion or the Japanese occupation. Is the hatred projected to Hee Yit Foong really justified? There are 4 assembly men/women who deserted Pakatan Rakyat, why the exclusive focus of hatred to Hee?

But human beings hardly ever act rationally. The mob emotion is a very dangerous beast. This incident is the proverbial last straw that breaks the camel back. What got released is a deluge of pent up anger, frustrations, hatred and what not. There is nothing rational about it. But the despicable intrigue that Najib played to topple the Perak government was equally irrational and unjustified. It was completely uncalled for in the current global climate. The blatant disregard of the wish and feelings of the people was a form of wanton selfishness. Such irresponsible act will prove to have a very destructive effect for both the Prime Minister to be and to Barisan Nasional.

I would have loved to see the incarnation of a culture of tolerance and cooperation where all these ugly memories can be put to rest forever. I would have loved to see Barisan Nasional stand strong and lead the country out of the epic crisis that is already at our doorstep. But the rampant corruption in Barisan Nasional had not given me any hope yet. It has been getting from bad to worst for all that I see.

My support for Pakatan Rakyat is not because of the historical ideologies of the respective component parties. The rather unexpected victory in 308 has forced the three parties – PAS, PKR and DAP - to go through thorough transformations to adapt to the new roles they have to play. My support is a way of facilitating the transformation so that it can become vehicle for our common survival in the current global crisis. I will give myself in completely for that.

This is a time of reflection for all, not for rash actions. There are a lot of questions to ponder. Why would Hee Yit Foong, who dedicated 28 years of her live with DAP, made such an irrational decisions? Her action is akin to suicide. Her actions is destructive to herself, to the parties she sworn allegiance to and to the people that she pledged to represent. It is a grotesque and tragic manifestation of uncontrolled egoity, much like the destructive game that Najib is playing now but in different flavor. This is a complex question. I will write more about it later.

Is the battle lost for Pakatan Rakyat in Perak? May be. But I think the war is only just beginning to warm up.

“The Chinese are sons of Adam. The Malays, too, are sons of Adam” Nik Aziz Nik Mat

"Something new must emerge ..... A new mode of social contract ...., an egoless mode ...... based on cooperation, tolerance and universal participation and accountability. " Adi Da, Not-Two IS Peace

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

KT by-election: a major corner stone is laid for Barisan Rakyat

2009-01-21T08:45:00.009+08:00

I have been glued to the computer for the past few days reading every bit I can find about the Kuala Terengganu by-election. Needless to say I was elated, almost overwhelmed to see a convincing win of 2651 votes for Pakatan Rakyat Candidate.

To me the KT by-election is much more significant that the Permatang Pauh by-election in August last year. The Permatang Pauh by-election represents a lot of what I always hated about politics, the most disgusting of which is the extreme racism and vicious character assassination tactics being used.

Yes, Pakatan Rakyat managed to deal a humiliating blow to Barisan Nasional. That was satisfying, but nevertheless the whole episode left a bad taste in my mouth. The endless parading of Altantuya and the Saifu Bukhari characters during the election period made one wonders what the election was about. It was like parading our backside for the whole world to see and made Malaysia a laughing stock to the international community. It was a shameful episode that should never be repeated again.

I wondered whatever happened to the Saifu character since. I have heard quite a few things. From the grapevine I heard that somebody did receive a ‘scholarship’ that is worth 3 million ringgit. But I wondered whether that is an enough compensation for the humiliation that he has to suffer for the rest of his life and the ordeal that he has to put his fiancé and family members through.

Maybe he was only a gullible young lad who wants to make it quick. He made it quick for sure – now he must be one of the most recognized face in Malaysia with a world famous backside to boast about. I am not convinced about his sodomy allegation against Anwar, but I am absolutely certain that he was being sodomized and exploited through and through by the heartless and merciless political machinery.

So much about the Permatang Pauh by-election. I am glad that the Kuala Terengganu was carried out on a completely different basis, at least for Pakatan Rakyat. As for Barisan Nasional, the election tactics were as dirty as ever save the highly seditious character assassinations.

It was just as well that the KT by-election started in the backdrop of a raging controversy involving one of the most contentious issues – PAS Islamic ideology and general mistrust of Islam amongst the Chinese. It was just as well that KT is not a safe seat and every vote from every people counts, regardless of race. Pakatan Rakyat components parties really had to work extra hard to bridge their differences, and I have to congratulate them for doing a wonderful job at it.

To me that was the most significant happening since the 308 election. This is the turning point where Pakatan Rakyat stopped being united by common hatred for BN, and begun to be united by the realization that we need each other – every single individual regardless of race, to succeed.

Malaysia has been subjected to 50 years of the most insidious systematic indoctrination under the BN government. We don’t have a real racial problem as such, as in Malaysia the races do work and mingle in harmony and we do make good friends with each other. But the incessant propaganda of hatred has nevertheless taken a heavy toll in our collective psyche.

I remembered reading about a Chinese couple giving up one of their children to be adopted by a Malay family. It happened less than 50 years ago. That sort of things was complete OK then. But last night I intended to share some excess fruits with my neighbor, my wife stopped me and told me that it is a sensitive issue for Muslim to receive from non-Muslim, and we don’t want to put our good friend in a difficult position. I have been away overseas for 16 years and I took it that there are still things I have to catch up with. But it really alarmed me that our social fabric has degraded to such an extent.

Such is the insidiousness of the hatred propaganda of the BN government to keep the race divided so that a small gang of thugs and power mongers can reign supreme as being the maintainer of peace. A lot of the ‘sensitivities’ are completely absurd and unnecessary. The game plan was very simple – make some really stupid policies or statements that stir up the racial sentiments to the boiling point, and then declare the issue to be ‘sensitive’ and come down hard with shock and awe and ISA and whatnots. And the result was more consolidation of power and the population in even tighter control.

So much of terrible policies and bad governance were morphed into racial issues this way. The ‘outsider’ race cannot protest because it was racially sensitive, and the ‘protected’ race is not allowed to protest either because it pertains to the interest of the race. In the end everybody losses out while a small gang thugs reign supreme while robbing the country clean.

We saw such tactics used in the infamous Ops Lalang incident. The recent stirring up of the hudud issue was another example to create fear amongst the Chinese so as to weaken PAS. But Malaysian has finally grown up and won’t buy into such bullshit anymore.

The KT by-election is a major turning point for Malaysia indeed. This is the first time ever that I saw real efforts involving all parties high and low in bridging the racial and religious gap and succeed in overpowering the BN hate machine. The most moving moment for me was to see PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat joining for dinner with the Chinese voters, and declared that: “The Chinese are sons of Adam. The Malays, too, are sons of Adam”

We still have a long way to go. But at least we have set foot in the right direction. Unity has to be the operating presumption to move forward or else will only be repeating the same bullshit in different flavors. It is only in unity that we know how to cooperate and care for each other. I do not see how else we are going to get through the crisis of the century that the BN government is still insisting that Malaysia will not be affected.

Special thanks to the bloggers united for bringing us the up to the minute news and working tirelessly in the background to help to cement the KT victory.

And special tribute our greatest hero RPK – who has done more than anybody else in cracking down the racial barrier in Malaysia. He never let us down. We shall all stand by him and not let him down either.

Rabbi Lerner on Israel in Gaza

2009-01-12T22:53:00.002+08:00

The author of the article below, Rabbi Lerner, may be Jew, but his views on the current crisis Gaza is one of the most compassionate and balanced I have read.

-----------------------------

Rabbi Lerner on Israel in Gaza
http://files.tikkun.org/current/article.php/20090102124321774

Israel in Gaza
By Rabbi Michael Lerner
January 5, 2009

Israel is still using a strategy of domination in its struggle with Hamas, trying to use force to gain security. But this is a recipe for endless war.

Gaza, December 31, 2008
Israel’s attempt to wipe out Hamas is understandable, but it cannot work.

No country in the world is going to ignore the provocation of rockets being launched from neighboring territory day after day. If Mexico had a group of anti-imperialist South Americans bombing Texas, imagine how long it would take for the US to mobilize a counter-attack. Israel has every right to respond.

But the kind of response matters.

Massive bombings of the sort that have thus far killed over 400 Palestinians and wounded 1,000 other civilians is a classic example of a disproportionate response.

Before Israel’s massive bombing, the Hamas bombings that began when the previous ceasefire ran out had not (thank God) killed any one. The reason is obvious: Hamas has no airplanes, no tanks, nothing more than the weapons of the powerless—limited range mortars with limited accuracy. Hamas can harass, but it cannot pose any threat to the existence of Israel. And just as Hamas’ indiscriminate bombing of population centers is a crime against humanity, so is Israel’s massive attack against civilians (in addition to those killed thus far in Gaza, there are the thousands killed by Israel in the years of the Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza). Israel's human rights violations during the cease fire included a massive cut off of food and other vital necessities--a crime against international law.

On the other hand, any understanding of the situation must also include acknowledgment of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder faced by Israelis living under the constant threat of terrorism, to which the katyushka bombings, however ineffective militarily, contribute massively. Living under constant threat of attack, plus hearing the leader of Iran talk about wiping Israel off the map, is a background condition that shapes Israelis ability to be so insensitive to the human damage they have caused by the Occupation. Conversely, the ongoing trauma of expulsion and the Occupation that has contributed to the ongoing ethical insensitivity of many Palestinians to the suffering that they cause Israelis by engaging in terror attacks against civilians. In short, compassion for both sides is a desparate necessity.

Hamas had respected the previously negotiated ceasefire except when Israel used the ceasefire as cover to make assassination raids against Hamas and other Palestinian leaders. Arguing that these raids were hardly a manifestation of ceasefire, Hamas would, as symbolic protest, allow the release of rocket fire (usually hitting no targets). But when the issue of continuing the ceasefire came up, Hamas wanted a guarantee that these assassination raids would stop. And it asked for more. With hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing acute malnutrition bordering on starvation, Hamas insisted that the borders be opened to counter Israeli attempts to starve the Gazans into submission. And in return for the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, it asks for the release of a thousand Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.

Hamas has made it clear that it would accept the terms of the Saudi Arabian peace agreement, though it would never formally recognize Israel. It would live peacefully in a two state arrangement, but it would never acknowledge Israel’s “right to exist.” This position is unnecessarily provocative, and represents deep self-destructiveness on the part of Palestinians who believe that this failure to acknowledge Israel’s rights is the only symbolic weapon they have left. To many Israelis, trapped in their own history as survivors of genocide and oppression, Hamas’ refusal to give official recognition is a way of saying, “We’ll wait till we have adequate military power, and then we’ll break any de facto truce and ceasefire and use that power to wipe out Israel, so just give us time.” Some Hamas people have actually said that publicly. Similarly, there are members of the Knesset who say that they will never accept anything less than the total expulsion ("transfer") of all Palestinians to neighboring Arab states.

Israel seeks to wipe out Hamas. But even if it killed every one of Hamas' twenty-thousand members in Gaza, it would not extinguish the impulse toward Islamic fundamentalism that Hamas represents. Surely Israelis by now know that killing only creates new generations of angry people who will be the next wave of terrorists. So what does Israel really seek? Probably it hopes to make Hamas so powerless that it loses the election against Fatah, and then the Palestinian Authority, itself deeply weakened by Israel's ongoing occupation, will negotiate a peace treaty that creates a "Palestinian state" that is actually a series of cantons or little separated city-states that are themselves cut off from each other by Israeli roads and military--in short a Palestinian state that will be neither economically nor politically viable. Then Israel can claim to have "given" the Palestinians "waht they want," and meanwhile Israel will retain its settlements throughout the West Bank and continue de facto control. Yet this will not generate long-term peace, but only a temporary rest in the fighting. Only a fully just settlement that allows Palestinians a real state that incorporates all of the West Bank and Gaza (with minor border modifications as detailed in the Geneva Accord of 2003) and that provides real compensation for Palestinian refugees, and a state created in a spirit of generosity and genuine caring on the part of Israel, will end the violence and provide Israel with lasting safety.

Let me be clear. I hate Hamas and everything it stands for. I want to see it defeated. But that defeat can only happen politically through isolation, not militarily through slaughter. The way to defeat Hamas is through meeting the legitimate needs of the Palestinian people and doing so in a spirit of genuine caring, in which the Jews of the world and the ISraeli people show that they recognize Palestinians as our brothers and sisters, made in God's image and equally precious to God as the Jewish people. In short, by Jews taking seriously our reliance on God and God's message that the world should be based on love, generosity, caring, kindness, and compassion. In short, a reversal of the reliance on power that has not brought Israel safety or security, and a trust in the fundamental decency of the majority of Palestinians. This is what it would mean for Jews to take seriously our own Judaism and manifest it in a Jewish state.

How do we get out of these dynamics that lead to the current situation in which a small number of Israelis and a huge number of Palestinians are killed or maimed?

The first step is for the world to demand an immediate ceasefire. That ceasefire should be imposed by the United Nations and backed unequivocally by the US. Its terms must include the following:

A. Hamas stops all firing of missiles, bombs, or any other violent action originating from the West Bank or Gaza, and cooperates in actively jailing anyone from any faction that attempts to break this ceasefire from territory controlled by Hamas;

B. Israel stops all bombing, targeted assassinations, or any other violent actions aimed at activists, militants, or suspected terrorists in the West Bank or Gaza, and uses the full force of its army to prevent any further attacks on Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza, including Hebron, from any Israeli citizen or anyone based in territory under the effective control of Israel;

C. Israel opens the border with Gaza and allows free access to and from Israel by Gazans and Palestinians, subject only to full search and seizure of any weapons. Israel allows free travel of food, gas, electricity, water, and consumer goods and materials including from land, air, and sea, subject only to full search and seizure of any weapons or materials typically used for weapons;

D. Israel agrees to release all Palestinians held in detention with or without trial or in prison and to return those Palesitnians to the West Bank or Gaza according to the choice of the detainees or prisoners. Hamas agrees to release Gilad Shalit and anyone else being held involuntarily by Palestinian forces;

E. Both sides agree to invite an international force to implement these agreements;

F. Both sides agree to end teaching and/or advocacy of violence against the other side in and outside mosques, educational institutions, the press, the media, etc;

G. This cease-fire is agreed to for the next twenty years. NATO, the UN, and the US all agree to enforce this agreement and impose severe sanctions on either side should either be determined to be in violation of the conditions.

These steps would make a huge difference by isolating the most radical members of each side from the mainstream, making it possible to begin negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people on a much broader and deeper set of issues.

The basic condition for creating peace is to help each side feel “safe” enough to ignore those within their own community who claim that peace is impossible and that no one cares about the safety of “the Jews,” or “the Palestinians.” A first and critical step is to speak in a language that is empathic toward the suffering of each people. Rather than try to prove that the Palestinians are “nothing but” terrorists or that Zionism is nothing but an elaborate scheme for continuing and escalating Western colonialism and imperialism, we must create a climate of discourse in which both sides’ stories are genuinely heard and undertstood. I’ve done this last part in my book Healing Israel/Palestine (North Atlantic Books, 2003).

Yet Israel, as the militarily superior power, ought to take the first steps to end this conflict once and for all. It could do that at any time by making the following moves:

1. Implementing a massive Marshall Plan in Gaza and in the West Bank to end poverty and unemployment, rebuild all that has been destroyed of the Palestinian infrastructure, and encourage investment in a new Palestinian economy;

2. Dismantle the settlements or tell the settlers unequivocally that they must become citizens of a Palestinian state, live by its laws, face charges if their settlements were constructed on land stolen from Palestinians, and that they will not be able to count on Israel to protect them;

3. Accept 30,000 Palestinian refugees back into Israel each year for the next thirty, a number that would not seriously endanger the population balance, apologize for its role in the 1948 expulsions of Palestinians (known as al Naqba), and offer to coordinate a worldwide effort to raise funds to compensate Palestinians for all that they lost during the Occupation (at least to those living in poverty--and conversely, there should be reparations to Jews who fled Arab lands, at least to those who are todaly living in poverty).

4. Recognize a Palestinian state within borders already defined by the Geneva Accord of 2003.

This is the only way Israel will ever achieve security. It is the only way to permanently defeat Hamas and all extremists who wish to see endless war against Israel. But it won’t happen until there is a massive shift in understanding about what promotes “security.”

Israelis have bought into a worldview about security that predominates in much of the world and is the central principle of American foreign policy: “homeland security can only be achieved by domination, either military, economic or diplomatic, of all those who might be potential adversaries.” It was this strategy of domination that led the US into the war in Iraq and that still leads some Obama advisers to believe that it would be wise to shift the focus of that war to Afghanistan and/or Pakistan. Yet the strategy of domination does not and cannot work in the 21st century.

The most significant contribution the new Obama Administration could make to Middle East Peace would be to embrace an alternative strategy: that homeland security is best achieved through generosity and caring for others. If the US were to announce its embrace of a Global Marshall Plan, beginning with the Middle East and backed up with money and the conscious articulation of a Strategy of Generosity, it would do more to help Israel than all the armaments it can promise and all the shuttle diplomacy it might facilitate. If this new way of thinking could become a major part of US policy, it would have an immense impact on undermining the fearful consciousness of Israelis who still see the world more through the frame of the Holocaust than through the frame of their actual present power in the world.

Meanwhile, it breaks my heart to see the terrible suffering in Gaza and Israel, as it does when witnessing the suffering brought to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Darfur—and the list goes one. For me as a religious Jew it is all the worse, because under the guise of serving God, both Jews and Arabs are actually acting out their accumulated pain in ways that will generate future suffering. At the same time Jews in the US who yearn to justify Israel’s actions only confirm to many young Jews that there is no place for them in the Jewish world if they hold a normal ethical sensibility, and further confirms to me how easy it is to pervert the loving message of Judaism into a message of hatred and domination. So I remain in mourning for the Jewish people, for Israel, and for the world.

Tags: afghanistan, Judaism, foreign policy, gaza, geneva accord, hamas, iraq war, israel, middle east, obama administration, pakistan, palestine,

Rabbi Michael Lerner is editor of Tikkun, a prominent progressive Jewish and interfaith magazine and chair of the interfaith Network of Spiritual Progressives.
Lerner has been described as "a prophetic voice" by the New York Times, Cornel West of Princeton, Jim Wallis of Sojourners, and the most recent of his 11 books, the New York Times bestseller The Left Hand of God, has been lauded by the L.A. Times, the Washington Post, and by Karen Armstrong, George Lakoff, Buddhist scholar Robert Thurman and Howard Zinn. Lerner has been one of the most prominent Jewish voices in opposition to the war in Iraq and in critiquing Israeli policy toward Palestinians. He is rabbi of Beyt Tikkun synagogue in San Francisco.

Copyright © 2005 Tikkun Magazine. Tikkun® is a registered trademark.
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KT by-election - you can help too

2009-01-03T09:54:00.005+08:00

Please read the excellent article by our true hero RPK: The dark horse of Kuala Terengganu

RPK: 8 March 2008 was one message we sent Barisan Nasional. The Permatang Pauh by-election was the second message. But both messages fell on deaf ears. So we must, yet again, send them another message. And this message must be to deny them the Kuala Terengganu seat. And we have to keep sending messages as long as they remain deaf. That is the only way and no other way.

To those who wish to donate to the Kuala Terengganu by-election effort you can bank in the money to the following bank account:

Tabung Dana Pilihanraya
CIMB Islamic
Bank account number: 1449-0000017-10-4

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I just banked in RM 50 as a humble token of my appreciation the sacrifices made by the Malaysia-Today guys and the many good leaders in Pakatan Rakyat. I am always with you guys in spirit, and I am glad that I can contribute some substance.

Let this election be a demonstration of the power of unity. Let this be a demonstration that humble unity of the people can trounce the big-gun heartless, soulless and murderous political machinery.

Why US finance is in such a mess - for dummies

2008-09-28T23:16:00.009+08:00

Are you finding it too hard to understand why US is in such a mess now? If so then the comedy below is a much watch for you. Amazingly the comedy was recorded in 2007, and has proved to be poignantly and deadly accurate.

One wonders - why the comedians can saw it coming while the the financial analysts and government regulators were so blind to it. From toxic mortgages to poisoned milk and who knows what else to come, this is a stark revelation of the folly and destructiveness of runaway capitalist greed.

One a more serious note, below is a very clarifying and factual article from the Financial Times, September 21 2008. What we are seeing now is only the very beginning, and this article details the unrawelling this is to unfold over the coming years.

The shadow banking system is unravelling
By Nouriel Roubini

Last week saw the demise of the shadow banking system that has been created over the past 20 years. Because of a greater regulation of banks, most financial intermediation in the past two decades has grown within this shadow system whose members are broker-dealers, hedge funds, private equity groups, structured investment vehicles and conduits, money market funds and non-bank mortgage lenders.

Like banks, most members of this system borrow very short-term and in liquid ways, are more highly leveraged than banks (the exception being money market funds) and lend and invest into more illiquid and long-term instruments. Like banks, they carry the risk that an otherwise solvent but liquid institution may be subject to a self-fulfilling and destructive run on its illiquid liabilities.

But unlike banks, which are sheltered from the risk of a run - via deposit insurance and central banks' lender-of-last-resort liquidity - most members of the shadow system did not have access to these firewalls that prevent runs.

A generalised run on these shadow banks started when the deleveraging after the asset bubble bust led to uncertainty about which institutions were solvent. The first stage was the collapse of the entire SIVs/conduits system once investors realised the toxicity of its investments and its very short-term funding seized up.

The next step was the run on the big US broker-dealers: first Bear Stearns lost its liquidity in days. The Federal Reserve then extended its lender-of-last-resort support to systemically important broker-dealers. But even this did not prevent a run on the other broker-dealers given concerns about solvency: it was the turn of Lehman Brothers to collapse. Merrill Lynch would have faced the same fate had it not been sold. The pressure moved to Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs: both would be well advised to merge - like Merrill - with a large bank that has a stable base of insured deposits.

The third stage was the collapse of other leveraged institutions that were both illiquid and most likely insolvent given their reckless lending: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, AIG and more than 300 mortgage lenders.

The fourth stage was panic in the money markets. Funds were competing aggressively for assets and, in order to provide higher returns to attract investors, some of them invested in illiquid instruments. Once these investments went bust, panic ensued among investors, leading to a massive run on such funds. This would have been disastrous; so, in another radical departure, the US extended deposit insurance to the funds.

The next stage will be a run on thousands of highly leveraged hedge funds. After a brief lock-up period, investors in such funds can redeem their investments on a quarterly basis; thus a bank-like run on hedge funds is highly possible. Hundreds of smaller, younger funds that have taken excessive risks with high leverage and are poorly managed may collapse. A massive shake-out of the bloated hedge fund industry is likely in the next two years.

Even private equity firms and their reckless, highly leveraged buy-outs will not be spared. The private equity bubble led to more than $1,000bn of LBOs that should never have occurred. The run on these LBOs is slowed by the existence of "convenant-lite" clauses, which do not include traditional default triggers, and "payment-in-kind toggles", which allow borrowers to defer cash interest payments and accrue more debt, but these only delay the eventual refinancing crisis and will make uglier the bankruptcy that will follow. Even the largest LBOs, such as GMAC and Chrysler, are now at risk.

We are observing an accelerated run on the shadow banking system that is leading to its unravelling. If lender-of-last-resort support and deposit insurance are extended to more of its members, these institutions will have to be regulated like banks, to avoid moral hazard. Of course this severe financial crisis is also taking its toll on traditional banks: hundreds are insolvent and will have to close.

The real economic side of this financial crisis will be a severe US recession. Financial contagion, the strong euro, falling US imports, the bursting of European housing bubbles, high oil prices and a hawkish European Central Bank will lead to a recession in the eurozone, the UK and most advanced economies.

European financial institutions are at risk of sharp losses because of the toxic US securitised products sold to them; the massive increase in leverage following aggressive risk-taking and domestic securitisation; a severe liquidity crunch exacerbated by a dollar shortage and a credit crunch; the bursting of domestic housing bubbles; household and corporate defaults in the recession; losses hidden by regulatory forbearance; the exposure of Swedish, Austrian and Italian banks to the Baltic states, Iceland and southern Europe where housing and credit bubbles financed in foreign currency are leading to hard landings.

Thus the financial crisis of the century will also envelop European financial institutions.

The writer, chairman of Roubini Global Economics, is professor of economics at the Stern School of Business, New York University

916 - The Birth of a New Malaysia

2008-09-16T03:44:00.007+08:00

There was something very different at tonight’s celebration of Malaysia Day Kelana Jaya Stadium. It was much more than a political rally. Something very significant was hatching. It was thick in the air. It was magical. It was infectious. I wish everybody were there to share those magical moments with me.

I arrived at Kalana Jaya Stadium seething with anger over the totally unreasonable and utterly idiotic detention of our fearless hero RPK and our respected YB Teresa Kok under the draconian Internal Security Act. The first sight that greeted me the moment I entered the stadium was the Ramadan prayer. The sight of hundreds of people worshiping the Divine with the serene voice of the Imam drew me into another space immediately. My heart followed the prayer although my mind did not know the language. I silently offered my prayer for RPK and Teresa, and I prayed for peace and unity in our beloved homeland.

I like to offer my highest praise to the Imam who conducted the prayer. I really appreciated his devotion to God and his peaceful voice that permeates the whole stadium with serenity. I was really grateful to be reminded of my connection to the Divine, which set the tone for my perception and participation for the rest of the night.

Religion has always been a big part of my life. It was never in doubt that our moral strength lies in our adherence to the Divine. My true wish is that one day we will not need to shunt each other because of the superficial differences in how we relate to the Divine. I wish that one day we can all allow God Be, be the unknowable Mystery, be the uniting principle for humankind.

I have been to a few rallies by Pakatan Rakyat. But this one was different, very different. What made it different was the lacking in negative emotions. You don’t feel the hatred for Barisan Nasional government. You don’t even feel that the rally was about a tremendous struggle to topple a big bad evil empire. There was hardly any smearing of the Barisan Nasional government. It was as if everybody already KNEW and presumed that the falling of the Barisan Nasional Government is inevitable. The rally was about the celebration of unity and a better future for all. The amount of light and happiness in the atmosphere was truly infectious and uplifting.

As I told you, I walked into the stadium with seething anger, but half way through the prayer I was already seeing things in a different light. I begun to see that the behaviors of the BN government was so unbelievably ridiculous that it was almost comical. Moreover every evil deed that the government did backfired badly immediately, and the politicians and government organizations are behaving like the three stooges. It was Divine retributions in its most graphical form! I heard that there were meant to be 15 people on the ISA detention list. I am really curious to get hold of the list and see what sort of ridiculous reasons were given for the intended detention. I am sure it will beat the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not show.

Despite the anguish of the ISA detention and the thinly veiled threat of 513 repeating, something very significant happened in our collective psyche tonight. The messages delivered by our leaders were pristinely clear – of unity, of restoring justice and order, of equal participation of life opportunities. The voices of the people were equally resounding and unequivocal. The spirit of unity was overwhelming. It was a remarkable demonstration of people power. The veil of darkness has finally lifted. Malaysia has finally come of age.

When the national anthem was played I was moved to tears. I understood for the first time the meaning of the lyric, and saw it in action right in front of me. I felt for the first time a deep sense of purpose for this piece of land that we called home.

916 has already happened. The transformation has already happened in the collective consciousness of the people. The rest is only a matter of time. This is the birth of a new Malaysia. Of that I am certain.

People Power - The True Story of the Internet

2008-09-01T22:57:00.010+08:00

Most of you will probably agree that Malaysia is in the midst of a huge revolution that is going to change the political landscape irrevocably. I would like to propose that at the heart of this revolution is a paradigm shift in our collective consciousness, brought about in conjunction with the development of the Internet as a communication medium that enables instant connectivity and encourages active participation from all. The result is people power, the rise of the voices of the ordinary people as a ground shaking collective force.

What we are observing in Malaysia is not isolated. Similar developments are developing all over the world, although most of them don't take the form of political uprising. I am including an excellent video about it below. You will see from this video that the new internet revolution is already shaking the foundations of the mass media and capitalist establishments.

I am certain that this is the era of people power. The collective force from the ordinary people lead by the selfless service from morally enlightened individuals is the only force that is able to avert the current march toward total annihilation.

I highly recommend this video to all. To my fellow Malaysians, it will give you a very good insight to the nature of Malaysia-Today as a social phenomena and why it is unstoppable.

Malaysia-Today as an interactive web site does not just belongs to Raja Petra alone. It is where 1+ million of us participate actively to share our views and inform each other what is right and relevant. It is where we hang out and share our heart and soul with each other. It belongs to all 1+ million of us. The government’s recent move to block Malaysia-Today is another of the idiotic move that will guarantee serious repercussions down the line.

Who is MCMC to tell us that Malaysia-today should be blocked anyway? On what basis did MCMC came to such conclusion? How many complains did MCMC received and from who? Why is Utusan Malaysia not being blocked for that matter? The five states lead by Pakatan Rakyat have made strong criticisms and called for the boycott of Utusan Malaysia for its ultra racist and seditious reporting. Isn't that enough 'complains' for its license to be revoked?

Malaysia-Today is NOT about lawless mob tearing down the establishments. Yes, there were a lot of criticisms about the BN government, but it is only because of its overwhelming corruption and incompetence. Malaysia-Today is not mindlessly endorsing Pakatan Rakyat either. Our respected Raja Petra and various others have written many very critical articles about Pakatan Rakyat and its component parties. I have written quite a few critical articles about Pakatan Rakyat myself for that matter.

Primarily Malaysia-Today is about human dignity and establishing the right religious and culture values. It is about building a nation where different races and religions can live in harmony and progress together. This is a place where we discover that there is hope after all in the midst of the current darkness. This is a place where we find the moral strength and the collective force to bring about the necessary change for the future of all.

MCMC should have known better that technologically it is impossible to silence Malaysia-Today. It is an unnecessary provocation to the people that is already overwhelmingly against the government. So much about MCMC and the BN government. I am ever more certain that it is simply beyond redemption….

People Power - The True Story of the Internet (part 1 of 5)

The above video is part 1 of a 5 parts series posted in YouTube. The rest of the series can be found here. It does take some time to download. My recommendation is to initiate the download on all 5 parts simultaneously, and come back 2-3 hours later to view them together.

The 11th Hour

2008-08-12T22:01:00.005+08:00

This video is every bit as compelling as Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. The message of this DVD is not about doom - but about the amazing advances in science and technology that have been made to solve the seemingly intractable problem of global warming. It is about turning mankind's darkest moments into its finest - but it is going to require the awareness and active participation of all.

To Leonardo DiCaprio fans - you wont get to see him much in the video, but you won't be disappointed nevertheless.

You can get the DVD for USD 4.99 from amazon.com.

The fallibility of the human brain

2008-07-15T22:52:00.008+08:00

I posted a brain-teaser in Numbers don't lie?. Let me recap here:

Three men go to dine together in a restaurant. The bill comes to $25 and they each contribute $10. The waiter takes the money to the cashier, who gives the waiter the $5 in change. Being a non-assuming waiter he takes the change back to the three men. The men take back a dollar each, hence effectively paying $9.00 each, and they leave the $2.00 as a tip for the waiter. On their way out, one of them points out that they each paid $9.00 for the meal, amounting to $27.00, and the waiter was left with $2.00. What happened to the other remaining dollar? Did the cashier pocket it?

Before reading on, if you have not tried it, give this puzzle a go. I guarantee that you will have some amusing and illustrative time.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lets’ analyze the puzzle a bit. Firstly the line of reasoning proposed in the puzzle is wrong. The three men paid a total of $27, of which $25 went to the restaurant, and $2 went to the waiter.

The equation is very simple:
$27 = $25 + $2

You CANNOT add $2 to $27. The result is a meaningless number.

$29 is a meaningless number, and so is the $1. It is completely meaningless to ask what happened to it.

Now the crux of the puzzle. Observe now the question was phrased. The reader was asked to figure out what happened to the missing $1. It was an intentional device to mislead the reader to believe in a false proposition – and then asked to figure it out. This is a puzzle that has stood the test of time. Most people will fall for it because it worked on a fundamental mechanism of the mind.

I had some good fun teasing a few of my colleagues a while back - all of them are pretty good programmers. A new colleague who is a fresh graduate got it right away, so I got him to shut up.

After some 10-15 minutes of puzzled look and convoluted reasoning, a couple of them are beginning to get it. But then I interjected and reassert the question: "What happened to the $1", and all of them are hopelessly lost again. A colleague that catches a ride home with me could not get it even after 3 days. He is a brilliant programmer. But every time he is getting near, I would ask the magic question, and it would throw him back into bewilderment again.

This puzzle illustrates a fundamental mechanism of the brain. The brain is a habitual machine. It learns by repetition and reinforcement. The 'learned' skills/behaviors are stored in the mid-brain, which is usually referred as the sub-conscious or the emotional brain. Once something ‘learned’ it will continue to repeat and reinforce itself until it is being replaced.

It applies to our motor reflexes, our emotional responses, and as this puzzle illustrates, even our logical/reasoning brain. Once a false conclusion is accepted it seeks to reinforce itself – and everything is reasoned using it as a starting point. This simple puzzle is particularly illustrative. The mathematics is dead simple, but even though the false proposition is leading to obvious contradictions, many people are not able to resolve it. They would rather give up than resolving the inconsistencies.

I actually think that the term sub-conscious is a misnomer. The behavioral pattern of a person is completely obvious to everybody else. But for the person concerned it is quite automatic and no longer under the awareness of the discriminative part of the brain. It applies to believe systems as well as habits of reasoning. It is actually very easy to see the bullshits and inconsistencies that someone is up to as an observer, but it can be extremely difficult to have the person concerned see it himself or herself.

This is a survival mechanism. Without it we do we will not even be able to do simple things like tying a shoe lace or riding a bicycle. There are indeed people with such functional disabilities, and many are extremely gifted in other areas, the so called idiot savants.

This survival mechanism makes us extremely vulnerable and susceptible to being manipulated. This is why propaganda is extremely effective and dangerous. The message needs not be true. In fact the message can be completely wrong and evil, and often they are. All that is needed is repetition, repetition and repetition. With the right propaganda apparatus it is easy to drive the whole country into hating each other or even killing each other.

I have always advocated boycotting Malaysia’s mainstream media. And I will say it again. Stop reading those lies and bullshits. They have been screwing us up for the past 50 years and will continue to do so until we are wizen up. Save you money, save the planet, save your discrimination, save your sanity.

A lot of what we 'learned' was never put under the scrutiny of wisdom and discrimination. But unlearning can be very difficult. Messages like Between belief and reality by our respected Raja Petra Kamarudin can be very difficult to swallow. Please see beyond the criticisms and feel RPK compassion. He is doing it for the sake of all. He is a man who is willing to go to jail for his convictions. The non-Muslim has to be sensitive to what Raja Petra is trying to do as well. He is doing a very difficult job. Please don’t make it any more difficult for him.

I feel deeply for what Reja Petra Kamarudin is doing, and I wish I could have more time to him more support. I identify with RPK mission a lot. I am in transit at Brisbane on a very important mission at present, but the moment I entered the hotel room the first thing I do is to turn on my computer and check out Malaysia-Today and Malaysiakini. Now it is past 1 am and I am still trying to finish this article. I will be extremely busy for the next 3 weeks, so pardon me if I could not response to your comments.

We have been under the spell of Barisan Nasional racial politics for far too long. There is a lot the different races need to work together to unlearn and undo. Every race and every religion has contributed their fair share of bullshits. Be strong with each other, but have compassion as well. The voice of tolerance and cooperation has to arise otherwise I don’t think we have any chance of surviving the current local and global crises.

All have suffered. All are equally full of nonsense. Therefore, in principle, there must be a new and universal politics — a politics of no praise and no blame. By these means, reconciliation must be achieved — cooperatively, in a disposition of mutual tolerance, trust, and respect.

Adi Da
Humankind Is Literally One Family

We've seen the future ... and we may not be doomed

2008-07-14T09:43:00.003+08:00

The Independent, July 13 (Highlights by HumbleVoice)

UN report finds life is getting better for people worldwide – but that governments are failing to grasp the opportunities offered at 'a unique time'. Geoffrey Lean and Jonathan Owen report

Sunday, 13 July 2008

Humanity stands on the threshold of a peaceful and prosperous future, with an unprecedented ability to extend lifespans and increase the power of ordinary people – but is likely to blow it through inequality, violence and environmental degradation. And governments are not equipped to ensure that the opportunities are seized and disasters averted.

So says a massive new international report, due to be published late this month, and obtained by The Independent on Sunday. Backed by organisations ranging from Unesco to the US army, the World Bank to the Rockefeller Foundation, the 2008 State of the Future report runs to 6,300 pages and draws on contributions from 2,500 experts around the globe.

Its warning is all the more stark for eschewing doom and gloom. "The future continues to get better for most of the world," it concludes, "but a series of tipping points could drastically alter global prospects."

It goes on. "This is a unique time in history. Mobile phones, the internet, international trade, language translation and jet planes are giving birth to an interdependent humanity that can create and implement global strategies to improve [its] prospects. It is increasingly clear that the world has the resources to address our common challenges. Ours is the first generation with the means for many to know the world as a whole, identify global improvement systems, and seek to improve [them]."

What is more, say the authors of the report, produced by the Millennium Project of the World Federation of the United Nations Associations, many important things are already getting better. Life expectancy and literacy rates are increasing worldwide, while infant mortality and the number of armed conflicts have been falling fast. Per capita income has been growing strongly enough to cut poverty by more than half by 2015 – except, importantly, in Africa.

Even better, it says, "advances in science, technology, education, economics and management seem capable of making the world work far better than it does today".

Medical breakthroughs, for example, are offering the hope of defeating inherited diseases, tailoring cures to individual patients, and even creating replacement body parts. And computers are spreading even to remote villages in developing countries and dramatically increasing in power to provide "collective intelligence for just-in-time knowledge to inform decisions".

The report reserves its greatest enthusiasm for the internet, which it says is "already the most powerful force for globalisation, democratisation, economic growth and education in history.

"The internet allows self-organisation around common ideals, independent of conventional institutional controls and regardless of nationalities or languages. Injustices in different parts of the world become the concern of thousands or millions of people who then pressure local, regional or international governing systems to find solutions.

"This unparalleled social power is reinventing citizens' roles in the political process and changing institutions, policy-making and governance."

And this is happening in a world that is already becoming freer and more democratic. Over the past 30 years, the number of free countries has more than doubled from 43 to 90, it reports, while those that are partly free increased from 46 to 60. Just over one-third of humanity still lives in the 43 countries with authoritarian regimes, but half of these people are in China.

On the other hand, the report warns "half the world is vulnerable to social instability and violence due to rising food and energy prices, failing states, falling water tables, climate change, decreasing water-food-energy supply per person, desertification and increasing migrations due to political, environmental and economic conditions".

These – and other threats such as increasing terrorism, corruption and organised crime – threaten to undo the improvements of recent years and blight the chance of a better future.

Food prices have more than doubled in a year and have already plunged 37 countries into crisis, greatly increasing hunger and poverty. And price rises seem set to continue because food production needs to increase 50 per cent by 2013 and double in 30 years.

"With nearly three billion people making $2 or less per day, long-term global social conflict seems inevitable without more serious food policies, useful scientific breakthroughs and dietary changes," says the report.

Global warming is occurring faster than expected. This could cause southern Africa to "lose more than 30 per cent of its maize crop by 2030" and help to increase the number of people facing water scarcity fourfold to a massive three billion by 2025.

The rate at which the world's ice is melting, it says, "has doubled over the last two years", and it quotes a US military report which predicts that global warming "can be an incubator of civil strife, genocide and the growth of terrorism".

Yet nuclear power – the solution increasingly favoured by governments, which are planning to add another 350 reactors to the 438 already operating around the world – will not do the job. "For nuclear energy to eliminate the greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels, about 2,000 nuclear power plants would have to be built, at $5-15bn per plant, over 15 years – and possibly an additional 8,000 plants beyond that to 2050."

The report says that there is not enough uranium in the world to fuel all those reactors, that another Chernobyl-type accident could halt the expansion in its tracks, and that the rapid spread of the atom around the world increases the chances of nuclear proliferation and terrorism.

It estimates that there is a 75 per cent chance that terrorists will have acquired nuclear weapons within the next 10 years, adding: "Links between terrorists and organised crime are worrisome, especially considering that, on average, there were 150 reports of unauthorised use of nuclear or radioactive materials to the International Atomic Energy Authority per year between 2004 and 2007."

Organised crime, it adds, "continues to grow in the absence of a comprehensive, integrated global counterstrategy". It reckons that it is now worth some $2 trillion a year.

There are grounds for hope, however. The use of renewable energy is growing, and China's largest car maker plans for half its cars to be hybrids within two years.

But the report's authors say that governments are not up to the job: "Many of the world's decision-making processes are inefficient, slow and ill-informed, especially when given the new demands from increasing complexity [and] globalisation." They call on world leaders to do more long-term planning, and to join in global approaches to the interlocking crises. "Climate change cannot be turned around without a global strategy. International organised crime cannot be stopped without a global strategy. Individuals creating designer diseases and causing massive deaths cannot be stopped without a global strategy. It is time for global strategic systems to be upgraded."

Jerome Glenn, the report's main author added: "There seems to be an interest in creating global strategies, but it needs a little push. There's more within us now to collaborate in the face of shared problems."

Computer power

25 years until a computer's capacity equals the power of the human brain. After another 25 years, everyone will be able to access processing power greater than that of all the brains on Earth combined.

The great melt

5 years before the Arctic could be ice-free in summer. Sea-ice last year shrank to 22 per cent below the previous record low, a level that had not been expected to be reached until 2030-50, opening up the Northwest Passage.

Fossil fuel

850 coal-fired power stations are planned to go into operation across the US, China and India over the next four years. Each station would operate for about 20 years, greatly accelerating global warming.

Solar energy

25% of Europe's electricity could come from solar-powered stations in North Africa by 2050. African leaders and aid organisations are to invest $10bn (£5bn) a year in renewable energy over the next five years.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note by HumbleVoice:
Read it again: Governments are not up to do the job. Not Barisan Nasional (Nasional Front), not Pakatan Rakyat (People Alliance). The political scene in Malaysia is absolutely disgusting now. The way we are heading, we will be like Africa before long.

Do I support Pakatan Rakyat? Yes. Do I believe that Pakatan Rakyat is able to run the country? No. I don't even think that it has enough expertise to form a functioning cabinet. But Barisan Nasional is rotten to the core - and I am absolutely certain that we are heading for doom if it continues to rule.

Our only hope is the people power. I will lend 100% support to Pakatan Rakyat. But Pakatan Rayat has to move beyond its cultism (PKR), fundamentalism (PAS) and chauvinism (DAP). It has to become a true alliance of the people and for the people. This is my commitment. I hope it is yours too.

A timeless speech

2008-07-06T01:22:00.008+08:00

About 15 years ago Severn Suzuki, Canada, was 12.

At the United Nations Earth Summit in Rio she made a timeless speech to the gathered delegates and to the world. Her message is more urgent and more relevant now than ever...

Below is from an interview with Severn Suzuki 11 years later:

Severn Suzuki: Over the last few years, after Rio, I was invited to many, many different conferences. Over time I've realized: this is not where we're going to see change. We've seen positive activism happening in the last ten years at the grassroots level, in small communities. It's about the individuals that make up the statistics about consumption and pollution, as well as the people who feel the negative impact, who are actually going to be the change.

It is powerful, because you realize that each individual really does count. And the more I've thought about it, the more I've realized that each person is a role model to all the people around us. Not only the children, but everybody. That's how cultures evolve and things become cool--the influence of a few individuals that catches on. (Severn Suzuki 1992, 2002, 2003, 2007, NOW)

Yes, Severn Suzuki was talking about Makkal Shakti, the collective power of ordinary you and I. Real change is not going to come from our culture or political leaders, but from each and every one of us waking up and catching on. It will probably take a bit of time - but it is a lot simpler than it sounds.

Consider this little gem by a 12 years old girl. Subject matter aside, there is a timeless quality to it. It speaks directly to the heart. It touches something deep in our heart. It transcends all superficial differences.

There is a true power and an unbroken unity at the heart of every being. This is the time for it to come forth. It is the only real power that will carry us through this most trying moment in human history.

Numbers don't lie?

2008-06-23T14:16:00.007+08:00

So you think numbers don't lie? Give this mind teaser a try:

Three men go to dine together in a restaurant. The bill comes to $25 and they each contribute $10. The waiter takes the money to the cashier, who gives the waiter the $5 in change. Being a non-assuming waiter he takes the change back to the three men. The men take back a dollar each, hence effectively paying $9.00 each, and they leave the $2.00 as a tip for the waiter. On their way out, one of them points out that they each paid $9.00 for the meal, amounting to $27.00, and the waiter was left with $2.00. What happened to the other remaining dollar? Did the cashier pocket it?

This is a famous puzzle which supposedly first appeared in R. M. Abraham’s Diversions and Pastimes in 1933. Don't be disheartened if you can't figure it out. Many don't. I am not going to spoil your fun by revealing the answer yet.

I am very interested to know how many and who is able to solve the puzzle. I would appreciate if you can participate in the poll that I set up.

Yes, numbers indeed don't lie. But it is exceedingly easy to mislead, confuse, lie, deceive and manipulate with numbers.

While the whole country is focused on Petronas' account, perhaps we were intentionally being mislead into looking at the wrong thing?

More to come ...

(see The fallibility of the human brain for explanation)

The mystery of our vanising oil money

2008-06-21T01:20:00.015+08:00

When common folks talked about our oil revenues we usually think of Petronas and the government as being the same entity. That was my perception when I wrote my last article: The 56 billion ringgit questions, but little did I suspect that I would have to completely reconsider my understanding almost the moment I posted the article.

I posted the article on 3:45pm June 4, and moments later I received an SMS that petrol price is going to go up. I was about the chuck the SMS away until I logon to Malysiakini and confirmed that the news was true indeed.

I was shocked by the suddenness and quantum of the increase as Najib’s reassurance of no price hike was still fresh in memory, and Shahrir was only hinting of a price adjustment in August the day before. My first reaction was that Pak Lah has just hammered the last nail in his own coffin.

I am not an economist by any means, but I came from a poor family and I have been through the years where every cent counts. It was completely baffling to me why Pak Lah would make such a sharp increase in petrol prices while the whole country was still reeling from the pain of the recent hike in the prices of food and other essential items. The combined effects are going to cause so much hardship to so many people that I seriously doubt Pak Lah is going to survive the fallout of it. And it got me thinking hard...

The Mystery of Our Oil Money

Let’s get back to the mystery of our oil money. After many hours of research and considerations – I came to realize that the relationship between Petronas and the government is much more complicated that it looks on the surface. The two are not the same entity after all; and by some recent announcements I think there could even be open hostilities between them. Read:

One key understanding is that although Malaysia is a net exporter of crude oil, our products are of very high quality and are primarily for export while we consume lower grade oils that are mainly imported from the Middle East.

While the exploration, production and export our crude oil are handled almost exclusively by Petronas, the import side is a bit more complicated. The importing and retailing of petroleum products are carried out by companies like Shell, Exxon, Petronas, etc. These companies are mandated by the government to sell below cost, thus they are compensated for their losses by the Government in the form of subsidy.

Yes – our government does subsidize our petrol. But it also receives money from Petronas in the form of royalty, taxes and dividends. Petronas is reported to have contributed 52.3 billion ringgit to the government for the financial year ended March 2007.

Is that a fair contribution to the government? I will be eagerly waiting for Petronas supposedly full disclosure. I don’t give much hope that the full disclosure will reveal details like why some big shots get to live like a king with private jet and helicopters, but it should give some basis for some intelligent guess-nalysis.

How much is the Government getting from Petronas?
The graph above shows Petronas contribution to the government over the past few years. I plotted it along with the yearly average crude oil price. The yearly contribution was obtained from Hassan Marican interview in RTM1 reported in Guang Ming Daily and the average oil price from EIA. As you can see Petronas contributions go up nicely with the price of crude oil, as most of us would expect.

What will be Petronas contribution for this year? That will be everybody’s guess. Would it be 70 billion? 80 billions? Whatever it is, it seems that Petronas is mightily reluctant to cough out its profits to the government.

How much is the petrol subsidy costing our government?

Our daily crude oil consumption is 501,000 barrels, or 183 million barrels per year. Each barrel is 158 liters, and typically yields 73.8 liters of petrol, diesel and other by products after refining (data from EIA).

Our yearly petroleum consumption is thus:
183 million barrels X 73.8 liters/barrels = 13.5 billion liters.

At the current crude oil price of 130 USD per barrel, the market price is RM 3 per liter for petrol (according to Shahrir).

Our government’s yearly subsidy on petroleum can be calculated as follows. For lack of data I will assume that the cost price of petrol and diesel is the same.


Before Price hike:
 The average price of petrol and diesel =
  (RM1.98 + RM1.52) /2 = RM 1.75

 Subsidy per liter = RM 3 – RM 1.75 = RM 1.25
 Total Subsidy = RM 1.25/liter X 13.5 billion liters 
                                   = RM 16.9 billion

After Price hike:
 Average price of petrol and diesel  =
   (RM 2.7 + RM 2.52) / 2 = RM 2.61
 Subsidy per liter = RM 3 – RM 2.61 = RM 0.39
 Total Subsidy = RM 0.39/liter X 13.5 billion liters
                                   = RM 4.0 billion

What do all these figures means?

Firstly, since Pak Lah took helm, Petronas has contributed RM 146.5 billion to the government. Petronas has been in operation since 1974 and contributed a total of RM 336 billion to the government. Pak Lah’s first 4 years in office received 43.6% of Petronas 35 years of total contributions. It is more than what Mahathir received in 20 years, inflation adjusted. And it does not even include this year’s contributions!

Is your reaction that of disbelieve? Are you wondering where have all these money gone to?

Mahathir is known for his opulence and extravagance and have created monsters like Twin Towers and F1 circuits to match his distorted ego. But what have Pak Lah done that is worthy of being mentioned? To give you a perspective, it costs RM 11 billion to build Putrajaya, and the order of RM 20 billion to build all our toll roads. Whatever happened to this mind boggling 147 billion ringgit? It seems to have just vanished in thin air. Something must be seriously wrong somewhere.

Now the 56 billions petrol subsidy quoted by Shahrir. My own calculations indicate that it should cost the government RM 16.9 billion. My calculations do not include subsidy for gas, but would it amounts to the RM 39 billions difference? Either my calculations are completely wrong or Shahrir is bullshitting. I would appreciate if somebody can verify my calculations.

My calculations show that with RM 52.3 billion contribution from Petronas the government should still be making a net profit of RM 30+ billions. And the recent price hike is going to bring extra RM 17 billions to Pak Lah’s coffer. Is it conscionable for the government to make such an obscene amount of money at the expense of such widespread suffering of the people?

I am shock beyond words by what I discovered today. The level of corruption and mismanagement by the Barisan Nasional government is way way beyond than my wildest imagination. It sickens and disgusts me to the point that I just want to cast the whole Barisan Nasional government to hell right away. Right now I will not hesitate for a moment to lend my support for Pakatan Rakyat to step in to take over the government.

Do I believe that Anwar is able to bring down the price of petrol and give Sabah and Sarawak 20% oil royalty? I have no doubt that he can, if he managed to gain back the control of the oil money. I do not agree with his oil policy, but that's a separate issue altogether. At least with Pakatan Rakyat there is hope that ordinary people like us is able to participate to bring about the right changes.

This is the time for us all to wake up. If the level of suffering and darkness of the current moment is not enough to wake you up, I don’t know what will.

Look who is suffering now? We all are. Does the 50 years of racial politics bring about the supremacy of any race? I hope our sad state of affairs is convincing enough to show us that racial politics can not work. It never will.

We have to forget about race, religion and other trivial differences and stand united as one. This is the time to exercise our collective power, our makal shakti, this is the only strength that we have to cast out the slime bag power mongers that are hell bent to destroy each other and bringing down the whole country with them.

More comments in Malaysia-Today

The 56 billion ringgit question

2008-06-04T15:45:00.014+08:00

(Also posted in Malaysia-Today)

I am referring to the article in Malaysiakini: Pump price at 'market levels by August'.

First of all lets get some basic facts right.

Firstly Malaysia is a net exporter of crude oil. So the government did NOT subsidize our petrol. The RM56 billion ‘subsidy’ per year is the extra amount that the government would have earned if it had exported all of our oil production. There is no 'spiralling bill', the government did not lose any money because it is our own oil and we are not paying anybody for our oil supply.

Secondly – when the government scrapes the so called ‘subsidy’ that it did not pay any money for in the first place – it is forcing the rakyat to buy back our own resources at a much higher price. Each and every one of us will suffer because of this, especially the poor.

The hike in oil prices has not caused hardships to our government. On the contrary it has already earned record profits for Petronas. And now our government is going to squeeze even more profits by squeezing the rakyat. Put it bluntly, the Barisan Nasional government will get filthy rich form the blood money of the rakyat.

Now the 56 billion ringgit question. What will the Barisan Nasional government do with the RM56 billion windfall per year? We already suffered a price hike on our petrol almost a year back, and have we seen any accounting on what has been done with the extra money that the government collected? I remembered that there were some talks of using the money to improve our public transport system. But so far I have only heard about the ailing KTM, failing bus companies and government cutting subsidry to Rapid KL.

Don’t you feel suspicious of what is going to happen to this hefty sum of money? RM56 billion is a mind boggling sum of money, it is almost enough to build 5 Putrajaya according to the official figure. The last thing I want to see is for the money to end up in political machines and lining the pockets of politicians and their cronies. I hope our Pakatan Rakyat representatives will see to it that every sen of it is accounted for.

I am not against raising the price of petrol. It is a matter of urgency that we cut our dependency on fossil fuels now as it is the main source of green house gas that is causing havoc in our weather patterns and ecosystems.

Even if global warming and destruction of our ecosystems is not your concern, you still have to consider the fact that crude oil price is not going to come down. Some analysts even projected that crude oil may reach USD 200 per barrel by 2012. Have you asked what is going to happen to our economy when our oil reserves run out in 5 years time?

Don’t you find it amazing that nobody is talking about these pressing issues now? This whole issue about oil subsidy is completely beside the point. The way it was phrased as if it was costing our government a hefty sum of money was completely misleading. The more pertinent point is really how we can best make use of the last of our rapidly depleting resource to safeguard our future. I have not seen any sensible policies regarding this from the Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat camps as yet. It is already sparking riots in many parts of the world, including our close neighbors, and yet nobody here seems to think that we have a problem.

I don’t think we can look towards our government for answers. Our so called ‘leaders’ are engrossed in fighting and bringing each other down, unscrupulously stirring up racial sentiments for their survivals. They never have the track records of putting the interest of the rakyat in the forefront anyway. The whole political scene is simply disgusting and depressing beyond words.

This is the time that ordinary people like you and I have to come forward and take charge. Count ourselves lucky that we have a 5 years grace period to get ready for the end of cheap oil. But we need to make sure that every ounce of our resources is used wisely for the survival of our future generations. That can only happen if we, the rakyat, unite as one single voice to demand for the right things to be done.

There are a lot we can do together, and we are not isolated either. There are already over a million environmental and social justice organizations around the world that we can work with right now. The fisrt step is to realize that we have a problem in hand. This is not just any ordinary problem. What we are facing is a problem of epic proportion that is going to require the cooperation of the whole world.

My deepest condolences to May 13 victims

2008-05-15T23:37:00.008+08:00

I did not expect to see the strong reactions from some people about my article What is this May 13 anyway. The purpose of the article was not to ignore the sufferings of May 13 victims and to erase the incidents from history – but to point out that the ultra right stance and continued racial instigations and propaganda have done much greater harm to the society than the incident itself.

May 13 is an incident that should not have happened, and I have great sympathy for the victims. Justice was never given in the first place, and 39 years of continued threat of it happening again was a continued relentless assault. No living soul should have to bear this agony.

Let’s recognize that we live in the same land and breathe the same air and we are as dependent on each other as Siamese twins. The Chinese as well as the Malays have contributed their fair share in the atrocities. This is not the time to find out who cast the first insult and which side has done more damage on the other. Let’s put this neighborhood war aside for now and hold each other hands to rebuild the trust that was damaged by decades of racial politics.

I sincerely hope that one day we will have an open forum where grievances can be voiced and acknowledged. For most, a listening ear, a supportive society, and assurance of justice and protection from harm would be sufficient to heal the wounds.

Lets this be a lesson for all that racial politics is not leading us anywhere.

I offer my deepest condolence to those who suffered in the event. I apologized for not making myself clear earlier.

What is this May 13 anyway?

2008-05-13T23:20:00.008+08:00

The topic May 13 is almost a taboo; it is a subject that stirs up different level of discomfort in most people. But how many people really know what it is, how many of us actually lived through the horror of it?

It happened when I was 9 years old, and my only memory of it was a few blissful days of no school and no homework. The incident was very insignificant in terms of human suffering. It was infinitesimal compared to the Japanese occupation, which has long been forgotten in our collective memory. But why does a small incident like May 13 get stuck in our collective psyche with such stigma? Yes, there were social and political ramifications – but how many of us really – I mean REALLY – took time to understand the cause and effect of it?

I would like to suggest that most of what we think we know about May 13 are mostly false, and most of our emotions associated with May 13 are mostly irrational. They are the results of almost 40 years of insidious propaganda. We were constantly being bombarded with threats about it repeating, each time with some new connotations added, until it became a boogeyman that everybody feared or hated but nobody knows exactly what it is.

The nature of the human mind is that we are extremely vulnerable to propaganda and brain washing techniques. Read the following article: 'We can implant entirely false memories'

"We can easily distort memories for the details of an event that you did experience," says Loftus. "And we can also go so far as to plant entirely false memories - we call them rich false memories because they are so detailed and so big."

Powerful emotions, it seems, can both reinforce and weaken real memories… And false memories, once accepted, can themselves elicit strong emotions and thereby mimic real ones.

The impressionability of the human mind is a crucial survival mechanism, for without it we would not be able to assimilate a vast amount of information within the rather short human lifetime. But it also renders the mind extremely easily exploited.

The human mind can be manipulated not just in terms of believing in falsehood. Witness the trial of Altantunya, observe how the trial process and the media were being manipulated. A hideous high profile murder could have been erased from the collective memory of the whole nation in the matter of months if not for the timely reminder of our true champion Raja Petra Kamarudin.

Human being can be driven to mass hysteria very easily as well. For example it only took one person waving a weapon, followed by a few provocative slogans chanting, and the country is divided and driven into hating each other. It is as irrational as the hysteria generated from a rock concert!

Today is the 39^th anniversary of the May 13 incident. Frankly this date holds no meaning to me whatsoever. For one thing I had always refused to believe in the racial hatred propaganda propagated by the Barisan Nasional government. I had always been driven by my yearning to reach out to another. I have been to many countries and made many good friends of people from different races. Skin color and trivial cultural differences has very little significance in the face to face, heart to heart relationship to another human being.

39 years is long enough for a lot of things to be forgotten and forgiven. May 13 would have been long forgotten if not because of the constant instigations from certain unscrupulous parties.

Any form of mass communication is extremely effective in influencing the population, and our mainstream media have been subverted into senseless propaganda machines for propagating all sorts of lies. It is time for the rakyat to stand together to put a stop to these bullshits.

Outrage at Cheras Toll

2008-05-11T02:16:00.008+08:00

I am referring to the continue saga regarding the barricade in Bandar Mahkota Cheras, as reported in Malaysiakini:

Barricade row: Answers next week

Before getting into the legalities of the issue, let’s investigate why Bandar Mahkota Cheras and surrounding residents are so pissed off by the barricade. It begun when Grand Saga, the Cheras-Kajang highway concessionaire, blocked off an access road two years ago to divert the traffic to the toll. As a result of the barricade the residents have to make a 6km detour – and on top of that they have to join the jam leading to the toll plaza and made to pay the RM 0.9 toll.

Lets do a simple calculation on how much the toll is costing the Bandar Mahkota residents. Assuming the current market rate of RM 0.6 per km for petrol, car maintenance and depreciation cost. Assuming that it takes 15 minutes to travel the 6km, and human resource cost is average RM 10 per hour.

Petrol and car maintenance:
6km X RM 0.60/km = RM 3.60
Human resource cost:
RM 10/hour X 0.25 hour = RM 2.50
Toll amount = RM 0.90

Total cost one way = RM 7.00
Total cost both ways = RM 14.00/day
Total cost/month (22days/month) = RM 308/month

Now you understand why Bandar Mahkota residents are so pissed off. Just because one private company willfully asserting its rights, it barricaded a fully functioning access road and make the residents suffer RM 7.00 direct and indirect cost for every 90 sen it collected. This whole thing is utterly ridiculous no matter from what angle I look at it.

The absurdity doesn’t end here. The legality of the barricade had been in dispute since day one. Refer to the following reports in Malaysiakini: Confirmed - residents can tear down concrete barrier.

The Hulu Langat land office did confirmed a few days ago that Grand Saga indeed had NO right to erect the barricade. So the Cheras residents took matters in their own hands and tore down the barricade. That provoked a violent reaction from Grand Saga. Read the follow up reports:

Grand Saga 'advised' to re-erect concrete barrier
Cheras residents in stand-off to protect toll-free road
Police fire tear gas at Cheras residents

So there was the rebuilding of the barricade, which the residents tore down immediately. Grand Saga responded by getting the Federal Reserve Unit involved. I read in utter disbelief that that over 200 FRU armed with tear gas and water canon were activated to protect the interest of one single private company against the residents of a whole township.

The legality of the barricade was in dispute in the first place. Under such circumstance how could the police take side? How could the police use extreme force - beating up and arresting MPs and residents, and fire tear gas and water cannon at them?

The whole happening was a complete outrage. It was a subversion of justice, not to mention a complete wastage of public resources. How could a private company wields such influence over the police? Who has the authority to order such a massive deployment of the police force?

These are things that got the rakyat so angry at the government that drove us to vote for the opposition. I thought the Barisan Nasional government would have learned something from the setback in recent election. But lo and behold, our Prime Minister was not even aware of this happening when asked about it yestarday!

Why wave the Keris to begin with?

2008-05-04T17:27:00.007+08:00

(also posted in Malaysiakini)
Last edited 7th May 2008 12:05 am

This response to Hishammuddin keris waving apology (Hisham apologises for keris act) is late in coming, but I found the whole episode so bewildering that even after writing my first response (Hisham: I apologize for my apology??) I still felt something very unsettling about it. It took me a further full week investigating the various aspects of it before I felt I have enough clarity to pen down the following questions and observations.

Let’s begin from the very beginning. I would like to post this question: what message was Hishammuddin trying to convey by waving the keris, accompanied by the ultra radical slogan from UMNO youth supporters? Did Hishammuddin thought that the Chinese were making too many unreasonable demands such that he has to wave a weapon as a gesture to defend the rights of the Malays? If that was the case, then what were the demands the Chinese made that were deemed so unreasonable to him?

Was he referring to the Chinese demands for more Chinese schools? What I recalled was that the Chinese communities were not even demanding for more Chinese schools, the demand was only to relocate some schools in the rural areas to the city, to reflect the change in demographic of the population. Or is there something wrong with Chinese education, for example that it hinders ethnic integration? If the Chinese education was not the issue, then what was it?

Whatever it is - can our leaders enter into mature dialog with each other to resolve them instead of resorting to waving weapons and chanting ultra radical slogans?

As of now, I still do not understand what this whole episode was about. Hishammuddin apology was as if it had something to do with the dignity of the keris and the Malay race. That was a lot of nonsense to me. He could have waved a parang or a Chinese Sword and people would be equally offended by it.

Similarly Najib’s follow up statements (Najib: Keris apology won't derogate Malay dignity ) and MCA acceptance of the apology was equally nonsensical.

I remembered reading about how the Beatles was being promoted at the beginning. The promoter hired a bunch of young girls and got them to scream and tear off their clothes, and that set off a whole generation of mass hysteria. Now we have one person waving a weapon with a few people responded with some slogans and the whole country is divided in semi-hysteria.

To me this whole episode was only a cheap publicity stunt, intended to further the political interest of one person.

Karpal – please leave the rotten apples alone

2008-04-29T23:23:00.006+08:00

Also posted in Malaysia-Today
(Last edited 30 April 2008 8.52am)
As our respected Raja Petra Kamarudin said – there were rotten apples in the basket. I would like to add that if something is rotten, warn others about it, but otherwise leave it alone and let it rot quietly - least it stinks up the whole place.

Karpal should concentrate on solving the many burning problems that we all are facing – or about to face. Suing the royal family is not something the rakyat needs now. It is not about being right or wrong in principle. It is just that no matter from what angle I look at it – I could not see a positive outcome for this action. Instead it will stir up a lot of shit and provide ample opportunities for unscrupulous people to exploit.

Karpal – please understand that DAP victory in GE 12 was mostly due to our disgust with Barisan Nasional’s corruptions and racism, not so much because of our love for DAP leadership and ideology. Yes – DAP struggle has it time and place, but we are in a different era now.

Truly, there is nothing much left worthy to fight against nowadays. The whole of Barisan Nasional is imploding, collapsing under the cumulated weight of 50 years of corruption. Just take a look at the Ku Li/Badawi/Mukhriz saga, the Khir Toyo vs. Sami Velu, Lim Keng Yik vs. Gerakan, Donald Lim vs. MCA saga - the whole lot can rot in hell for all that I care. But what I do care very much that Pakatan Rayat is not anywhere near the rotten scenes.

What we need most urgently now is not somebody to fight for us – but somebody who can provide a strong leadership to ride through the impending global crisis. We need good, efficient, rational governance – and more importantly we need compassionate leadership to bring the races back together.

Is is not even that the rakyat will vote DAP out in 5 years time if it doesn't perform accordingly. It is more that if the parties as well as the rakyat don't assume a position of unity and cooperate with each other on that basis, there may not be much left to be cherished after the worst recession in 30 years hit us in full force.

Hisham: I apologize for my apology??

2008-04-27T12:17:00.006+08:00

I have to say - the article Hisham apologises for keris act that appeared in Malaysiakini got me very confused. I must have read it at least three times and I am still struggling to try to understand it. And then the following article Najib: Keris apology won't derogate Malay dignity came out today – oh man, that got me utterly confounded.

At first Hisham made an apology to the non-Malays, and then almost on the same breadth, was an apology to the Malays about having to make the apology. Sorry I am a computer geek, but something just doesn’t compute here. I mean – doesn’t the second apology nullify the first?

In the first place, what was the intention of waving the keris anyway? I am by no means a historian or a scholar, but my perception of the keris is that is a symbol of justice, courage and dignity. These are universal virtue that transcends race, religion and ideology. But the way the keris was being waved, the forum, the context, the intention, the radical stance – was every bit in contrary to the virtue that the keris represents. It was the subjugation and perversion of a sacred symbol for political means.

The waving of the keris was the act of derogation of human dignity. So Hisham apology should be to the whole of humanity, plain and simple. But the way the apologies were made, one apology to the non-Malays, and another apology to the Malays, was as if it was a matter of one race against others.

We have to put a stop to these racial bullshit. All Malaysians, regardless of race, should cherish and honor the virtues represented by the keris. We have to say no to racial politics. We have to stop the keris and other cultural/religious items from being hijacked for political means.

What? Ali Rustam a Blogger?

2008-04-17T23:09:00.005+08:00

(Also posted in Malaysia-Today)
Something very significant happened on 8 March 2008. It was like the burst of lightning that awakened everybody from their slumber. All of a sudden the whole country is riveted to the political process, and we have unprecedented number of mamak stalls, kopitiam politicians and whatnot.

The level of participation from the rakyat on the political process is truly astounding. For example when YB Lim Kit Siang made a wrong move, within the first couple of hours hundreds of messages have already appeared all over the web condemning his move. The same thing happened when Sivasubramaniam threatened to quit. Similarly when Mohd Ali Rustam made some truly stupid remarks regarding the pig farm project in Selangor he was bombarded with hundreds of very unflattering comments in his blog.

But this is where the similarity ends. While YB Lim made a public apology and Sivasubramaniam reverted his decision promptly, Mohd Ali Rustam chose to delete the offending comments and locked down his blog to prevent further comments. I almost fell off my chair when I read about it in Malaysiakini. Was he trying to control the internet like how BN controlled the mainstream media? Was he in denial mode, sweeping the dirt under the carpet and pretend that everything was hunky-dory? I could not believe that 50 years of BN rules has produced leaders of such colossal stupidity and arrogance. The way he is going – I don’t think he will last another election. I will do my part to see to it that he doesn’t last another election.

This simple incident illustrates a dramatic difference between Barisan Nasional politics and Pakatan Rakyat politics. In Barisan Nasional politics, the leaders say and everybody listens. The leaders are high above; they cannot be criticized, beyond criticism and untouchable. And UNMO expects this bunch of arrogant idiots to run their personal blogs?

Blogging is very much about coming face to face with the readers and subjecting oneself to be judged by all. Nobody cares about your Tan Sri title, your personal palace, your Mercedes Benz, your police escorts, and there is no secretary to filter out unwelcomed guests. Everybody is on equal ground, and only one’s integrity and intelligence matter. It was never a one sided conversation. Even our respected Raja Petra, whom everybody listens to, would read the reader’s comments and change his writing style accordingly.

Today is a very sad day indeed, because Makal Osai is being shut down. No reasons were given, and no reasons need to be given. I felt a wrenching pain in my heart as Makal Osai is one newspaper that was not subjugated to being a mouth piece of the ruling party. I don’t read Makal Osai, but I strongly believe that politics should not interfere with the media. The people should be the judge. The people as a collective gathering have infinitely more wisdom to decide what is right and true than a bunch of self-serving politicians.

Yes, I am still boycotting the mainstream media. I will continue to advocate it until the mainstream media learn to uphold its sacred duty with true integrity or die a natural death. I am but one humble voice answering the call to straighten our media. If the calling is true, the number of voices will multiple and before we know it we will have another tsunami. This is how the collective process works.

If you believe in the urgency of the matter, please add your voice here: Boycott the newspapers!

MCA – please wake up to what the rakyat is demanding

2008-04-12T17:10:00.002+08:00

I have family members, relatives and good friends who are MCA members. I always despised politics, especially the Barisan Nasional politics, but I had reserved a soft spot in my heart for MCA, even volunteered to help out in the 1999 election. But whatever feelings I had for MCA has all but gone now.

I never thought much about politics, but I had been able to close an eye on it. I was annoyed by the ultra-radical rhetoric of UMNO youth, the keris waving etc, but I never quite believed in it. For me it was only a song and dance for some silly people to move up the rank in a crazy game called politics. I see that the politicians, the warlords and the Chinese tycoons and Ali Baba’s are so dependent on each other in minting their money and robbing the country that nobody really wants to rock the boat too much.

But the recent antics of some MCA leaders have got me fuming mad. I am referring to the PAS/Islam bashing announcements, calling DAP the traitor of the Chinese for going to bed with PAS etc. I don’t think many Chinese would take statements like these seriously, as everybody can see that the Chinese was never so well represented in the new government. But our Malay brothers and sisters are in a much more precarious situation. The welfare of the ordinary Malay – in fact any ordinary nobody regardless of race – was never really looked after by BN, and now all of a sudden they are faced with a new government with even less Malay representations.

I am not sure whether MCA is so dumb to not see this, or whether it is just a bunch of bankrupt politicians looking for cheap publicities. But statements like these that incite religious and racial tensions are downright irresponsible and dangerous in the current delicate situation. I consider these to be infinitely more sinister and dangerous than UMNO’s keris waving antics.

MCA – please wake up. The rakyat have spoken loud and clear in GE 12 that we don’t want race politics anymore. DAP and PAS, and indeed the whole Pakatan Rakyat has demonstrated their willingness to listen to the rakyat and made tremendous progress in finding a middle ground where all race and religions can cooperate and live in harmony. Please work with the rakyat to build a better tomorrow for all.

The Three Christs of Yipsilanti (2)

2008-04-12T10:10:00.002+08:00

(Posted in www.malaysia-today.net 16 March 2008)

I want to reiterate that the letter I wrote yesterday (The Three Christs of Yipsilanti) was not meant to condemn any groups or individuals. The opposition parties are born out of the resistance to the constant threats, intimidations and instigations from the BN racial politics. In the case of DAP, historically, it took the role of Robin Hood, the underdog hero that fought to uphold the identity and welfare of Chinese population. Of course this is a form of chauvinism for it gained the support and sympathy from the Chinese at the expense of exclusion of other races.

To be fair we have to give credit to the DAP leaders, as without their persistence thorough the think and thin of it, going in and out of ISA detention and prison we would not have the vehicle and the grass root support to see the victory now. The underdog hero role is a baggage that need to be shed. But DAP is also under a lot of pressure, and they have to make a lot of very difficult adjustments. It is going to take time for its leaders, let alone its grass root support to understand and comprehend the new role that DAP has to take on. And worst of all is that its arch rival MCA has been busy fanning the fire from behind.

A few MCA leaders made some statements regarding the Perak Chief Minister issue that appeared in the Chinese newspapers on Friday. The statements read like “Chinese are betrayed by DAP conceding chief minister to PAS”. When I read statements like these I fume with anger. These bunch of sore losers has no sense of social responsibilities. They do not care how dangerous it is to instigate racial sentiments in a delicate time like this. So much for being the elected or aspire to be elected statesman or representative of the rakyat. For them every damm thing has to be sensationalized. This is their political chip. One criticism of Ong Ka Ting is that he was too quiet, and that is equivalent to being politically bankrupt. This the dirty nature of politics. Oh man, I do hate politics. I really want to give the whole bunch a good spanking, especially the self-proclaimed devout Buddhist Ong Ka Chuan.

I generally have been very upset by the coverage of the election in the mainstream newspapers. The incident I related above got me fuming mad. And when I saw the cat fight cartoon referring to the Perak MB issue in the front page of Friday Sun I slammed the paper down, and swore that I will not put up with any of these bullshit anymore. When I received an SMS calling to boycott of the mainstream papers last night, I promptly forwarded it to every single contact in my SIM card, even to names that I can’t remember. Guang Ming Daily is the only paper that I buy now.

I don’t want to second guess Raja Nazrin Shah’s intention on his choice of Perak’s Chief Minister. But my first impression is that it is a stroke of genius. It is going to stir the pot big time. It is going to force DAP face-to-face with PAS. It will force DAP to work closely with PAS – the one single party that DAP sworn no allegiance with. If DAP can pull it through it will demonstrate to all that DAP is mature enough to accommodate other races.

I am generally very happy with how things are unfolding. The news that the Perak’s chief minister will be sworn in tomorrow is a big relief. My salute to YB Lim Kit Siang for making a prompt apology and giving a very balanced explanation of it in his blog, and kudos to PAS youth for openly supporting the new government in Penang. This is the type of cooperation that will move us forward.

For me the greatest significance of GE 12 is not the birth of a two party system in Malaysia. The greatest victory is that we, the rakyat, are no longer helpless, isolated individuals that are subverted and manipulated by the power mongers. We have found our collective voice. It is voice that transcends religion, race and ideology, and it is powerful enough to cause a political tsunami.

The Three Christs of Yipsilanti

2008-04-03T17:15:00.003+08:00

(Posted in http://mt.m2day.org/ 15 March 2008)
This is how the story goes. There were 3 mentally ill patients who harbored the illusions that they were Jesus Christ at the Ypsilanti State Hospital of Michigan. One day a researcher psychologist by the name of Milton Rokeach had a bright idea. He decided to place the 3 self-proclaimed Messiah in the same therapy group. He thought that by exposing the three to similar delusions of the other he could bring them back to reality. To cut the story short - no - Rokeach did not managed to provoke any lessening of the patients’ delusions. The amazing thing is that the three ended up accommodating each other, and set up the very first ‘Society of Christs’, in order to persist in their delusions. The result of his experiment was a hugely insightful study into the basis of delusional belief systems.

Since the advent in communications that brought the whole world together we have seen this absurdity being played out time and again with disastrous consequences amongst the religious, national, racial, tribal etc groups. And now this absurdity is being played out by our beloved Saviors – DAP, PAS, and PKR. The way they have been behaving these few days – each asserting its ‘absoluteness’, each asserting its ‘rights’, even using underhand tactics to get an upper hand on each other, was completely stupid.

I always hated politics. I despised it. And that was why I abstained from voting until this year, my 48th year in life. I detested the hypocrisy and the one sided chauvinism being played out on both sides. Yes, I am talking about Barisan Nasional as much as DAP, PKR and PAS. Hardly one week had passed since the windfall victory and we are already seeing the ugliness raising its head in each of the respective parties. The anti-Islamic chauvinistic stance of DAP, and the hypocrisy of PAS…. I don’t want to elaborate any further here. If you want to find out more please read Raja Petra articles.

This is for the record – the first ballot that I cast last weekend, was not for any political party or parties. What I voted for is Barisan Rakyat. My vote is my declaration of solidarity to the silent movement of awakening spearheaded by Raja Petra, Haris Ibrahim et al. It is a vote of confidence for the high moral standards and selfless service demonstrated by these remarkable individuals. My vote has nothing to do with race, religion, and definitely not about any political parties.

I am not writing to condemn any particular groups or individuals, but to point out that race, or religion or ideology based politics has no relevance anymore. It is not even that the parties have to get together to come to some amicable power sharing agreements. No – that would only result in an absurd “Society of Christs”. The whole damm thing about racial, religious and ideological differences simply has to be dropped. And it can happen. The last weekend was nothing short of being a spectacular demonstration of it. The whole event was simply magical. If the Malays had known that DAP is going to win this big many would not have voted the rocket. If the Chinese had known that the 3 richest states are going to fall they would have opted for the safety of BN. I can only use Divine Intervention to describe the unfolding of events.

Winning the election was the easy part, as we are fighting a big, bad, stinking, rotten something that everybody wants to get rid of. But moving forward from here is going to be much more difficult. We have to face up to our own evils - personal ambitions, the petty differences, not to mention the soaring crude oil and commodities prices, the looming recession and sabotage from the BN stooges. Makhal Shakti has to continue. It is going to require active participation from all, and it has to continue in a much more organized and efficient manner. The collective voices of everybody has to continue to demand rightness. It has to heal the mistrust brought about by decades of misgovernance. It has to bring back to balance the distributions of wealth and opportunities. It has to wash clean of all differences and prevent any willful efforts to create separation.

I have absolutely no idea how to proceed from here, except that to pledge my 100% support and participation. The rest I will have to take it one day at a time.